Metronome Review: Long-lasting Cross-Blockchain Cryptocurrency

Metronome’s goal is to provide ongoing tokens to provide sustainability (as opposed to other cryptocurrencies whose value falls to zero) and to be engineered to be self-adjusting and self-governing. Its contacts are fully autonomous and do not rely on human intervention. This mobility means that when one blockchain ceases to exist, coin owners can easily transfer their currency to another place. This ensures their value and endurance. As Metronome’s co-founder, Roszak, reported to Bloomberg: “We’ve built a thousand-year cryptocurrency, something that’s built to last.”

Article Summary

• Metronome’s team and idea
• The Metronome Technology
• The Metronome Tokens
• The Metronome Platform
• Metronome ICO

The Idea and the Team Behind Metronome

Metronome was developed with this idea of being a stable, predictable and constant cryptocurrency. The team sought a name that represented this idea in as clear a manner as possible: the metric that keeps time in music.

Metronome is a new cryptocurrency launched by a company called Bloq, a blockchain technology company co-founded by Jeff Garzik and Matthew Roszak. Garzik is the CEO and co-founder of Bloq as well as the chief designer of Metronome. He is also one of the earliest bitcoin developers. His vision of the cryptospace includes an internet of blockchains, based on bitcoin. Cross-chain smart contracts, in his view, is the final stage of this vision. The altcoin is the first cross-chain cryptocurrency that allows its users to transfer tokens seamlessly from one blockchain to another.

To better understand the company vision, we can review Roszak’s analogy from BlockCoin Today: “Every blockchain out there is a railroad. So, Ethereum, Classic, Quantum, etc. Here, you can take your boxcar and move it to another railroad. Which is a novel thing, it’s like a self-governance component.”
In Roszak’s view, cryptocurrency has three key components: value, payments, and machine-to-machine mechanisms where these different machines are paying one another.

The Metronome Technology

As the world’s first self-government, cross-blockchain cryptocurrency, Metronome will first be issued on Ethereum, with plans to later run on Ethereum Classic, Rootstock on Bitcoin and Quantum. This allows users flexibility for management and security purposes. In addition, portability assures user that the currency will endure.
Metronome was founded on three key design principles:

• Self-governance – Resistance to influence from groups and individuals. This includes influence from the founders. It also means that the coin will be completely on-chain, decentralized and autonomous.
• Reliability and predictability – Includes a predictable and steady token supply. This also includes a consistent addition of Metronome.
• Portability – The ability to move Metronome across blockchains as governance norms change. This includes future blockchain as ledge technology matures.

These design principles are where Metronome stands out in the cryptocurrency marketplace.

“We believe that individuals will be empowered by a currency designed with self-governance as a first-order variable. Further, institutions can more confidently enter the cryptocurrency category, as Metronome will enable them to innovate and develop reimagined financial products,” said Roszak in a press release published on the Metronome website.

“With Metronome, we sought to design an autonomous cryptocurrency system that is highly resistant to governance failure and is intended to last for generations,” said Garzik in the same press release. “To accomplish this, we recognized early on that allowing users the freedom to select which blockchain most closely aligns with what they value was not only an important feature, but a vital one if we were to realize the Metronome vision.”

The Metronome Tokens

The initial Metronome token supply will be 10 million. Twenty percent of this number, 2 million, will be distributed to founders while the remaining 8 million will be available for public sale.

After the initial auction, Metronome tokens will be added every 24-hours, either at 2,880 MTN per day or at an annual rate equal to 2.00% of the then-outstanding supply per year. Every 60 seconds, the price of the remaining tokens decrease by 1%. Unclaimed tokens roll over and are added to the next Daily Supply Lot (DSL). The expected rate for the number of tokens for the first 40 years will be 2,880 Metronome per day. Afterwards, it will be higher.

New tokens enter the system via a descending price auction (DPA). Unlike traditional auctions, where the price per token starts at a minimum price, a DPA starts at a maximum price which slowly decreases as the token supply is sold or the auction ends. This is how Metronome is able to establish transparent and predictable pricing, as its name reflects.

The Metronome Platform

Metronome’s platform consists of 4 autonomous smart contracts

1. The first contract is the Metronome token and ledger that interacts directly with the blockchain. It is used for P2P transactions.
2. The second contract is the auctions contract in which users purchased their Metronome coins.
3. The third contract is the proceeds contract. Proceeds from both the auction and the daily supply of tokens end up here.
4. After 24 hours, the proceeds contract sends a quarter of its Ethereum to the autonomous converter contract which is used to buy Metronome. In contrast, users can also use the platform to buy Ethereum with Metronome.

The smart contracts have been audited by Zeppelin Solutions, Martin Swende and Gustav Simonsson, all independent consultants.

In addition to the 3 core design principles, Metronome has additional features, which include:

• The ability to make mass payments in one batch
• The ability to allow recurring payments between users (i.e. subscriptions)
• ERC20 and ERC827 compliance
• ERC827 includes the latest standard with enhanced decentralization exchange and security features

As with any cryptocurrency, there are a few risks. The first is chain dependence, also known as chain mutability or chain denial of service. Metronome aims to mitigate this risk with the ability to make cross-chain transactions.

Another risk is immutable bugs that may need to be worked around. Lastly, there is the risk of contract attacks, which fall into two categories. The first type of contract attack exploits the contract’s bytecode-defined EVM behaviour, while the second types induces unintended behaviour from the contract functioning as designed.

The ICO

Metronome’s target launch is set to March 2018. The starting price is set to be two Ethereum for every Metronome. However, the team has agreed that a descending price auction will ensure more price predictability. It will also prevent auction participants from buying large numbers of Metronome.

However, Roszack says that Metronome’s ICO is atypical since the proceeds from the sale of Metronome tokens enter into a smart contract that provides liquidity and price support. There will not be a pre-sale before the ICO.

To participate in the Initial Supply Auction, users will need an ERC20-compatible Ethereum wallet with a private key. Only then will they be able to purchase enough Ethereum to purchase Metronome. Proceeds from the auction will be used to provide long-term support for the community. The first Daily Supply Lot (DSL) will be after the close of the Initial Supply Auction.

In Q2 of 2018 the company plans to launch its first cross-chain on Ethereum Classic.