Signum (SIGNA)—Formerly Burstcoin (BURST)

What Is Signum (SIGNA)?

Signum (SIGNA), formerly known as Burstcoin (BURST), is a cryptocurrency that is designed to be highly energy-efficient and a model for green mining. Signum/Burstcoin's blockchain operates using a proof-of-capacity (PoC) algorithm, which uses a mining device’s available disk space instead of following other energy-intensive mining methodologies.

Burstcoin was the first coin to use the PoC algorithm and utilizes the empty space on a miner's hard drive for mining. Other cryptocurrencies that use PoC are Storj, Chia, and SpaceMint. The mining process for most virtual currencies requires specialized, expensive, energy-intensive machines; for Signum/Burstcoin, participants only need to have a regular hard drive. In fact, participants can even mine on Android phones.

Since the entry into Signum/Burstcoin mining is so easy, the technology is more decentralized than other cryptocurrencies. For example, bitcoin requires a huge financial commitment to

Signum/Burstcoin is available for trading on exchanges various different exchanges, including Bittrex, Upbit, and Eterbase. Burstcoin suffered a significant price decline after it was delisted from Poloniex in May 2019. Due to this, in part, Burstcoin officially changed its name to Signum, under the symbol SIGNA, on June 24, 2021. This was the result of a hard fork that essentially rendered the original Burstcoin void.

As of October 2021, 1 SIGNA is worth approximately USD $0.01, with an overall market cap of $21.7 million.

Understanding Signum/Burstcoin

Signum/Burstcoin is operated by Burst-coin.org. An anonymous user introduced Burstcoin on bitcointalk.org in 2014. The technology was developed based on the Nxt platform and shares many of the same features as the cryptocurrency. Like the creator of Bitcoin, Satoshi Nakamoto, the creator of Burstcoin remained anonymous. A team called the Proof-of-Capacity Consortium (PoC Consortium) is currently developing the project.

Signum/Burstcoin supports smart contracts based on blockchain technology, offering the same standard features of other virtual currencies: anonymity, decentralization, and high-security cryptography. Burstcoin's tokens are referred to as Bursts. There was no initial coin offering (ICO), no pre-mining allocations to early adopters, and no airdrops for any promotions of the cryptocurrency during the launch.

Signum/Burstcoin is mined through the proof-of-capacity (PoC) process. (PoC is also sometimes referred to as proof-of-space.) Whereas proof-of-work (PoW) mining requires a lot of computing power, the PoC method allows the computing to be performed beforehand and all the answers to be stored on a hard drive.

For each new block in the blockchain, the miner has less than five minutes to read through the solved equations (also called "plots") on their hard drive and return the correct answer. The first correct answer wins the block and is rewarded with transaction fees and the Signum/Burstcoin block reward. The computational resources for mining Signum/Burstcoin are limited to the time it takes the miner to read the plot files stored on mass storage.

The Burst developers pre-mined zero coins. The Signum/Burstcoin blockchain operates with a block time of four minutes. The block reward size reduces at a fixed rate of 5% each month and contains a limited token supply of 2,158,812,800 Burst tokens. The Signum/Burstcoin network also offers a dedicated digital wallet, called the Burst Wallet.

Other important Signum/Burstcoin features include the Burst Asset Exchange, a peer-to-peer exchange that is integrated into the Burst Wallet and offers a seamless, rapid, secure, and decentralized exchange of various Burst assets. The Burst Asset Exchange allows for Signum/Burst assets to be used as a token of ownership for anything that has a value, which may include retirement funds, mining farms and pools, companies, and casino sites. It's a convenient way to make investments, gain dividend profits or capital growth, and ensure liquidity in trading assets.

In June 2018, the creators of Signum/Burstcoin implemented a hard fork that created both dynamic block sizes and dynamic transaction fees. In June of 2021, another hard fork converted Burstcoin into Signum.

Goals of Signum/Burstcoin

Signum/Burstcoin also supports crowdfunding, smart contracts, and a dedicated marketplace that allows blockchain participants to list, buy, and sell anything and everything using these tokens on a marketplace free of commissions.

Signum/Burstcoin’s features include secure encrypted messaging. This can be used to communicate securely with other network participants, and the messages can be attached to the various transactions occurring on the network that facilitates description as well as simple bookkeeping.

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