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Digital Asset Holdings LLC, a blockchain technology group, recently acquired two startups: Hyperledger and Bits of Proof. These companies are focused on the blockchain itself, which is the public ledger of verified bitcoin transactions.
Blockchain is considered the defining feature of bitcoin, as the ledger is updated through a vast network of computers solving complex algorithms to add a new block to the code. Entries in the blockchain are considered immutable and irreversible since it would take an overwhelming amount of effort to override all the computers that have verified and stored the information.
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“Hyperledger and Bits of Proof add valuable new dimensions to our product offering and great talent to our team,” said Digital Asset Holdings CEO Blythe Masters, who was a former head of global commodities at JP Morgan. “We build tools to help clients harness the power of distributed ledgers to serve their own customers. We integrate financial infrastructure with a variety of innovative new technologies inspired by the blockchain. Different ledger technologies serve different purposes and all of those we integrate with are additive.”
Hyperledger was a finalist in the SWIFT Innotribe Startup Challenge last year and considers itself a blockchain without a currency. It creates blockchain-like settlement networks designed for financial institutions, which provide very fast confirmation times, do no mining at all, and come in either a centralized or decentralized layout.
Meanwhile, Bits of Proof is software company based in Budapest that has built and deployed several bitcoin business applications. Several bitcoin enthusiasts have questioned the move of Digital Asset Holdings in acquiring blockchain technology startups instead of focusing on bitcoin itself, with some citing that there can be no blockchain without bitcoin.
“It is technically possible to have a blockchain without bitcoin, but it also will not have any of the security and/or resiliency features which make Bitcoin’s blockchain the most secure, distributed supercomputer on the planet,” remarked John Matonis, Bitcoin Foundation Founding Director.
