An Overview of Consensus In Beldex

7 min readDec 13, 2023

Below is a brief overview of the consensus mechanism used in Beldex after the POS transition.

Consensus mechanisms are the foundation of every blockchain network, guaranteeing that all members agree on the ledger’s current state. Beldex, a blockchain project focusing on privacy, has created its unique consensus techniques to guarantee safe and private transactions. In this article, we will examine in depth the Beldex consensus processes and how they contribute to the network’s operation.

Knowing Beldex

Before getting into the mechanics of Beldex’s consensus method, it’s vital to understand what Beldex is and why anonymity is central to its architecture. Beldex offers a privacy currency, developed with the sole objective of providing a private and safe way of transacting.

Privacy currencies, like Beldex are meant to obfuscate transaction data, adding anonymity to the sender and receiver, and tracing the amount involved is almost difficult. Beldex does this using advanced cryptographic algorithms, and its consensus process plays an essential role in preserving anonymity.

The Operation of Consensus Mechanisms

Understanding Blockchain Consensus

Before digging into Beldex’s consensus methods, it’s important to grasp the basic idea of consensus in blockchain technology. The method by which network participants agree on the authenticity of transactions and the state of the ledger is known as consensus. Consensus assures that there is no central authority to trust in decentralized systems such as blockchain and that transactions are safe and reliable.

Consensus mechanisms are protocols that ensure that all participants in a blockchain network agree on the blockchain’s current state. They are critical in authenticating and confirming transactions while also ensuring the network’s integrity and security. There are several consensus procedures, the most common of which are Proof of Work (PoW) and Proof of Stake (PoS).

Beldex initially worked based on the PoW consensus then later upgraded to PoS consensus in December 2021.

PoW: Resource-Intensive Competition

Proof of Work is based on the competitive mining premise. To solve cryptographic riddles, miners must invest in sophisticated hardware (typically specialised Application-Specific Integrated Circuits or ASICs) and consume energy. The first miner to solve the puzzle broadcasts the answer to the network, and if it is validated, they are granted the ability to generate a new block and are paid with cryptocurrency (e.g., Bitcoin).

PoW is based on the idea that the combined processing power of honest miners will always be greater than that of bad actors, making it prohibitively expensive for attackers to influence the blockchain. As a result, PoW networks are both extremely secure and energy-intensive.

PoS: Economic Incentives and Security

Proof of Stake, on the other hand, is based on the idea that individuals or entities with a significant stake in the network have an economic incentive to keep it running smoothly. Validators in PoS are chosen at random to build new blocks and validate transactions. To disincentivize harmful conduct, PoS networks include fines or “slashing” methods. Validators that attempt to influence the network risk losing some or all of their staked coins. This economic incentive is intended to assure the PoS blockchain’s security.

Overview of BeldexPOS

Every 30 seconds, a masternode is chosen at random to produce a block of transactions. This masternode is called the block producer. The block generated by the producer is then validated by a set of another 11 nodes, called the block validators. For the block validation to be successful, a minimum of 7 masternodes must approve the block by signing it.

Once the block is approved, the block producer is rewarded with BDX. A total of 10 BDX is minted per approved block. While 3.75 or 37.5% of the minted BDX is allocated to governance, 6.25 or 62.5% is allocated to the producer. This process is once again repeated to produce the next block.

The Importance of Beldex’s PoS Consensus

Beldex’s Proof of Stake consensus technique has various advantages and distinguishing features that set it apart from other cryptocurrencies, particularly in the context of privacy-centric digital assets.

Privacy

Beldex’s principal purpose is to give better privacy to its users. The network delivers a high level of transactional privacy by integrating PoS and masternodes. Users may transact with confidence since their financial transactions are hidden from prying eyes.

Security

The PoS consensus protects the Beldex network’s security and integrity. For someone to carry out a 51% assault on a PoS-based blockchain, a hacker would need to hold more than 50% of the total number of staked BDX coins.

Thus, a 51% attack is virtually impossible as it would require someone to obtain control of half of the network’s masternodes.

An assault on the Beldex network is both difficult and unprofitable since the malicious user stands to lose their stake or at least have it locked up for a maximum of 45 days even if they do gain control of 51% of the network.

Besides, the cost of acquiring BDX that is required to set-up masternodes will keep ever-increasing since BDX is a limited resource. By trying to acquire vast amounts of BDX, the attacker would be doing the network a favour by driving-up its price. On the other hand, they will not be able to sell (to recover the cost associated with performing such an attack) if the network were known to be compromised.

Nodes on Beldex are sufficiently decentralized since a vast majority of them are run by the community in multiple locations. Less than 200 masternodes are maintained by the Beldex foundation. The consensus process lies at the heart of any blockchain’s security. There are a few fundamental threats that blockchains must be protected against, and Proof of Stake consensus techniques excel at defeating them ensuring that the value held on the Beldex blockchain is secure.

Decentralization

PoS networks seek decentralization by allowing a larger variety of users to become validators without the requirement for costly mining equipment. This, in theory, lowers the possibility of centralization.

By letting anyone host masternodes, Beldex’s PoS consensus fosters decentralization. This approach limits the authority of centralized entities while empowering the community. The entry barrier to running a Beldex masternode is low. A user only requires approximately 10000 BDX coins to run a Beldex masternode.

Scalability

The nature of PoS enables efficient network scalability as additional users join. This scalability is required for any cryptocurrency to gain broad adoption.

In many cases, PoS networks are more scalable than PoW networks. They can execute transactions faster and at less cost, making them suited for high-throughput applications.

Sustainability

As the blockchain industry expands, we must critically assess if our present models are more sustainable, with greater room for long-term growth. Environmental and financial sustainability are becoming more important challenges. While the POW is energy intensive, the POS impacts the environment a little less.

Rewards

Validators in a PoS system are compensated for their efforts with transaction fees and, in certain cases, newly minted cryptocurrency coins. Typically, these payments are dispersed based on the quantity of digital currency staked and their participation in the validation process.

A total of 10 BDX is generated per block. Beldex rewards its validators 6.25 BDX for each validated block. Rewards are shared among validators so as to provide each validator with a fair chance at network participation. Users can calculate their rewards here: https://beldex.io/masternode

Block time

Beldex POS is designed with the goal of achieving a consistent block duration of 30 seconds. In the rare case of a block generation failure, a new block will promptly be created within the subsequent 30 seconds.

How It Works

An Insight Into the BeldexPOS Operating Mechanism

Provided below is an exhaustive examination of the operational intricacies underlying the BeldexPOS consensus mechanism. BeldexPOS operates through a sequence of four pivotal rounds: 1. Proposition, 2. Commit, 3. Disclose, 4. Publish

In the first round, a block producer is randomly selected from the masternode list in the block production queue. Subsequently, a group of 11 validators (quorum) is deterministically chosen utilizing a random value embedded in the preceding block. The producer scans the transaction pool, formulates a block prospect, signs it, and disseminates it to all 11 validators. Each validator forwards the block prospect to three other validators.

Moving to the second round, all 11 validators in the quorum generate a random integer, and the hash of that integer is transmitted to the remaining validators within the quorum.

In the third round, validators disclose the pre-image of the hash, representing the random integer hashed during the commit round. This process ensures that each validator possesses a subset of disclosed values, which are combined to generate a completely new random value. Validators append this value to the prospective block, sign the resulting block, and transmit the signature to all other validators.

The final round involves each validator verifying the legitimacy of signatures from other masternode validators, ensuring unanimity in signing both the same prospective block and the same combined random integer. Once signatures are validated, any validator within the quorum can publish a block to the network, comprising at least 7 validator signatures.

Closing Thoughts

BeldexPOS is a powerful yet simple system for creating blocks and arranging transactions in the Beldex network. Bucephalus does all of this while boosting security and reducing the need for energy-intensive PoW. Furthermore, it is more aligned with current incentive systems to reward those who put in the effort to build an order and protect network masternodes.