NEM stands for ‘New Economy Movement’. Not ‘just another’ blockchain, but a smarter, more dynamically advanced blockchain. The Founders call the project a ‘Smart Asset Blockchain’, which can manage assets, data and do away with the issues that other blockchains face such as long transaction times and network congestion. This makes it potentially a more viable project for partnerships and companies using the NEM platform.

NEM is the first cryptocurrency to create their code from scratch after Bitcoin. It was originally a fork of the cryptocurrency NXT but then developed from scratch to become NEM (XEM).

NEM is the first cryptocurrency to create their code from scratch after Bitcoin. It was originally a fork of the cryptocurrency NXT but then evolved to become NEM (XEM). NEM is run by the NEM.io foundation in Singapore, a non-profit organization. XEM is the currency used on its blockchain. However, it has yet to enjoy wide adoption by merchants as it is still in the early stages. Today, (9.10.2020) XEM is only being used to pay other members of the NEM community and to transaction fees on the NEM platform.

What are the project goals of NEM (XEM)?

NEM lives in the same space as Ethereum, Stellar, and Ripple. NEM ‘s blockchain was designed for speed and scalability.

The project was created to bridge a gap in the market with a highly flexible, customizable blockchain to suit the needs of different projects. The focus is on four core elements; performance, ease of development, deep customization, and security.

NEM uses a distinct algorithm – Proof of Importance - and delegated harvesting to reward verification. When a block is harvested, it is permanently added and the harvester is rewarded from transaction fees.

This ensures the system is as efficient because harvesting is an energy-conserving process, unlike mining. Also, there is no incentive for rewarding miners for unrestricted use of power - running the system is affordable and this drives down the cost of transactions.

Taking away the power from the miners levels the field for all network participants. The system is efficient because NEM uses the proof of importance algorithm to enhance the abilities of the blockchain and make it useful to more businesses.

How much NEM (XEM) is on the open market?

XEM has a large supply compared with something like Bitcoin which has only ~21million available. 

There are  8,999,999,999 XEM on the market; the total supply. This makes the crypto unusual compared with competitors who typically lock up a portion of supply for early-investors or a foundation. 

What the bears are saying about NEM (XEM)

Poor marketing: This is often the case for cryptocurrency projects - not enough information for potential investors and users explaining what the project does, or how it can help them. No one knows who leads the project or the upcoming developments on its roadmap. 

Is it special enough?  Yes, it was built from the ground up to be unique like Bitcoin, but does that make it a good long-term prospect for adoption? Not necessarily, there are many competitors that arguably do it better and have more smart-contract functionality compared with XEM. 

What the bulls are saying about NEM (XEM)

It’s big in Japan: Many countries champion specific projects. For NEM it’s Japan. It was designed specifically for business projects and there was talk that they were establishing it as the ‘go-to’ blockchain for enterprise adoption in Japan. 

Light on resource: In an environmentally-sensitive climate, and with many critical of cryptos that consume vast amounts of power to mine using the PoW (proof of work) model, many adopters want greener currencies. XEM uses ‘delegated harvesting’,  NEM’s alternative to mining Accounts.