About AllianceBlock (ALBT)

AllianceBlock is an interoperable blockchain protocol aiming to bridge the gap between traditional finance (“TradFi”) and DeFi ecosystems. The platform’s native token, ALBT, is used for transacting and for governance. ALBT is also a means of securing the protocol, via staking.

AllianceBlock consists of three distinct layers that work in conjunction to create a decentralized and globally compliant capital market. Through this “next generation” framework, AllianceBlock aims to equip regulated financial institutions with the tools required to seamlessly access various DeFi related products and ecosystems.

The first of these layers consists of various DeFi solutions, including liquidity mining, staking, an AllianceBlock DEX, and a peer-to-peer funding channel, AllianceBlockFundr. 

These services are facilitated through the AllianceBlock DeFi Terminal, which works as a hub, enabling users to access “the best of DeFi in one place,” as a project Medium post explained.  

The protocol’s DeFi capabilities are also enhanced via the AllianceBlock Bridge, a “decentralized interoperability platform” that allows users to transfer tokens between a range of supported ecosystems including Ethereum, Polygon, and Avalanche, the project’s website said.

The second of AllianceBlock’s three layers, the “Data Layer,” comprises several solutions which enable both DeFI projects and TradFi entities to access and monetize massive amounts of data.

The AllianceBlock “Data Quasar” serves as an “enterprise-grade” API which aggregates various streams of crypto and other financially related data (allianceblock.io).

Likewise, the AllianceBlock “Data Tunnel” works as an information marketplace allowing projects/firms to earn revenue from the massive amounts of data at their disposal.     

The last, but perhaps most important, piece of AllianceBlock’s three-pronged infrastructure is the Regulatory and Compliance layer, which introduces a range of scalable services designed to help DeFi projects comply with an ever-changing global regulatory landscape.

The protocol has also been bolstered through its integration with Hedera Hashgraph’s Hedera Consensus Service which enables AllianceBlock to operate at scale while also maintaining a low and predictable fee structure. 

AllianceBlock garnered attention throughout the crypto sphere in January of 2021 through its acceptance into the London Stock Exchange Group (LESG) Partner Platform which is a program to develop apps for companies in search of new ways to reach customers and looking to leverage LESG technology.

According to Messari, the alliance will allow LESG partners (institutional firms) to access various services offered by the protocol.

In October 2021, AllianceBlock announced its partnership with Home - Dua Main, a global remittance service with nearly 300,000 users.

When was ALBT created and how much was it worth?

Launched in 2018, AllianceBlock is the brainchild of three co-founders with backgrounds as quants and investment bankers at big global institutions. These co-founders are Rachid Ajaja, Amber Ghaddar and Matthijs De Vries. Per allianceblock.io, all three of them remain involved in the project’s development serving as CEO, CIO and CTO, respectively. 

As noted by Messari, AllianceBlock’s development was further enhanced by way of various accelerator firms – including Level39 and Station F – which allowed the protocol to gain access to top-tier talent and investors.

In July of 2019, the platform managed to raise $1 million through an initial seed funding round. A further $500,000 came from a private sale of AllianceBlock’s native token, ALBT, in August of 2020. ALBT was first distributed to the public via a token generation event roughly one month later.

Data from CoinGecko shows ALBT trading at $0.15 following its public launch before losing nearly two-thirds of its value within a few weeks. The token’s price rallied throughout late December 2020 and into January 2021, hitting $0.92.

Following a subsequent dip, ALBT once again found momentum in August and September 2021, rising to a record high of $1.36 in the process. 

Apart from a brief surge in November of 2021, ALBT’s price has declined amidst growing market uncertainty.

How is the price of ALBT determined?

Only 1 billion ALBT tokens will ever exist; less than half (460 million) are currently in circulation. Deflationary assets in theory have favorable dynamics assuming long-term demand increases with supply finite.

In terms of tokenomics, 45% of total supply was reserved for the protocol’s ecosystem, treasury, and liquidity mining services, while a further 15% will be distributed to network nodes. An additional 25% of supply is set to be split between various core development team members, advisors, and partners, as well as the AllianceBlock Fund. Moreover, some 14% of supply was distributed via a private token sale and initial seed funding round. 

ALBT’s price is partially a function of its deflationary nature. General market conditions and levels of speculation on growth prospects are also factors.

Why does ALBT have value?

In an ever-changing regulatory landscape, AllianceBlock offers a range of services aiming to build a globally compliant capital market. For TradFi firms wary of the regulatory risks inherent in DeFi, AllianceBlock would seem to represent a potentially promising solution offering these institutions the ability to access decentralized markets while maintaining regulatory compliance.  

Is ALBT secure?

A standard ERC-20 asset, ALBT is backed by a range of Ethereum wallets and exchange-based storage solutions.

Furthermore, AllianceBlock leverages the Hedera Consensus Service to create an immutable and verifiable log of all network transactions.

What are the main benefits of ALBT?

• AllianceBlock bridges the gap between traditional finance and DeFi. The project touts itself as “on the path to disrupt the $100 trillion securities market with its state-of-the-art and globally compliant decentralized capital market.”
• The platform is led by an experienced team of ex-JP Morgan, Barclays, BNP Paribas, Goldman Sachs investment bankers/quants.
• AllianceBlock leverages integration with various legal/regulatory structures to offer a way forward for globally compliant capital markets.
• AllianceBlock Bridge provides protocol users with much-coveted cross-chain interoperability.

What do critics say about ALBT?

Price performance has been abysmal. Between December of 2021 and December of 2022, ALBT plunged 90%.