Counterparty Features

Tokens

Custom Counterparty tokens can be used for a wide range of purposes and act as their own cryptocurrency, while still running on the Bitcoin blockchain. Unlike ordinary bitcoin, custom tokens can be used to represent any kind of value.

Tokens are being used today to:

conduct successful crowdfunding and voting,
monetize access to decentralized application (“DApp”) software features,
represent a product or personal brand,
act as a sort of “blockchain domain name”,
as an authentication token,
to represent digital goods, such as in-game cards,
as a proxy for a real-world good or service (i.e. tokens exchangeable for paper, biofuel, etc),
act as a reward for providing valuable time or resources,
as an educational service to explore the functioning of a blockchain,
and purely for fun.

Asset Exchange ("DEX")

In the physical word, exchanging assets is fraught by risks and problems, such as potential theft and reliance on an escrow agent or central counterparty. On Counterparty, the roles of escrow agent and clearing house are filled by the Counterparty protocol itself, eliminating unnecessary costs, time, and third-party trust. In any transaction the required funds are debited from each party’s address immediately, and are not released until the conditions of the contract have been met.