What is Kava?

KAVA is the native governance and utility token of the Kava Network, a cross-chain blockchain platform for decentralised finance (DeFi) that offers a variety of apps and services for cryptocurrency users.

Kava uses a Proof of Stake (PoS) consensus mechanism based on Tendermint that provides Byzantine Fault Tolerance (BFT), immediate finality, and security. With many Cosmos SDK modules in place and 100-plus expert validators secured, the Kava blockchain allows users to earn more with their digital assets in a secure manner.

The network is similar to MakerDAO in many aspects, with the addition of collateralised debt positions (CDPs) — Kava’s core lending service. However, Kava leverages greater use of Cosmos zones to provide access to cryptocurrencies operating on independent networks.

A brief history of Kava

Kara was developed in 2018 by Kava Labs, a for-profit corporation whose mission is to develop and drive the development of the Kava platform. Brian Kerr, Ruaridh O'Donnell, and Scott Stuart co-founded Kava.

Its mainnet was launched on 14 November 2019. That same year, the Kava team raised US$3 million via the sale of 6.5% of the total KAVA supply during a token sale on the cryptocurrency exchange Binance.

Kava’s decentralised lending platform was launched in June 2020, enabling users to use BNB as collateral for USDX loans. By August 2020, a total of US$24 million in BNB contracts were locked up, with US$8 million borrowed.

As of July 2022, there are ​​220.89 million KAVA tokens in circulation out of a currently uncapped maximum supply; since KAVA is inflationary, the maximum supply increases over time. This inflation is proportional to the percentage of bonded tokens.

How Kava works

Kava is a Layer-1 blockchain that offers DeFi services to crypto users across many blockchain networks, such as stable currencies, bonds, and lending. Kava's goal is to provide a basis for different open financial services, like security, cross-chain bridges, and modified Chainlink oracles, to enable developers to swiftly design new cross-chain DeFi apps and distribute them to Kava's worldwide user base.

The lending platform and the native cross-chain money market application are both built on the Kava blockchain. This way, they work together to create a decentralised bank for digital assets, connecting users with products like stablecoins, loans, and interest-bearing accounts that allow them to do more and earn more with their digital assets.

The Kava ecosystem features three kinds of tokens: the KAVA token, the USDX stablecoin, and the HARD token. KAVA is the native token of the network and is essential to the platform's security, governance, and mechanical functions. Users may exchange their crypto assets for USDX, Kava's stablecoin. The HARD token is the HARD Protocol's governance token meant to incentivise early participants by providing them a voice in the application's ongoing progress and management.

What is Kava used for?

Kava developers want to streamline the decentralised lending market by integrating a number of proprietary technologies. Developers particularly designed the system to enable stablecoins and decentralised lending against all major crypto assets in a more transparent and simple way.

As the utility and governance token of the Kava blockchain, KAVA can be staked for rewards or used for voting on proposals within the Kava ecosystem. The token can also be bought and sold on exchanges to generate profits based on the difference between buying and selling prices, and it is the currency used as rewards for Kava blockchain validation nodes.