Hedera

Hedera (HBAR) is a public distributed ledger designed for fast, low-cost applications with enterprise-grade governance. Instead of a conventional blockchain, Hedera uses the hashgraph consensus algorithm, a directed acyclic graph (DAG) structure in which nodes share transaction information efficiently and reach agreement with near real-time finality.

Hedera is distinctive for its governance model. The network is overseen by the Hedera Council, a rotating body of large global organizations — members have included Google, IBM, Boeing, Deutsche Telekom, LG Electronics, and University College London, among others — each running network nodes and voting on platform decisions. This structure is intended to prevent any single party from controlling the network while providing the stability enterprises expect.

How Hedera works

The hashgraph algorithm uses a "gossip about gossip" protocol: nodes rapidly share not just transactions but information about what other nodes know, allowing the network to establish fair transaction ordering and trusted timestamps without energy-intensive mining. Network security uses proof-of-stake weighting, with HBAR staked to nodes. Alongside its smart-contract service, Hedera offers the Hedera Consensus Service, which applications use to create immutable, verifiably ordered logs of events — useful for supply-chain tracking, auditable records, and ordering services for other networks.

HBAR is the network's native token, used to pay transaction fees, compensate nodes, and secure the network through staking. Its supply is fixed at 50 billion HBAR, all created at network launch, with roughly 43 billion in circulation; there is no ongoing issuance beyond releases from the pre-minted supply. Within the crypto ecosystem, Hedera occupies the enterprise-oriented end of layer-1 platforms, emphasizing predictable fees, high throughput, and council-based governance.