Utility (Web3) Tokens vs Community Coins
Next: Defence (new topic)
Utility Tokens vs Community Coins
The community coins presented seem very close to the tokens issued in web3 projects. What might be their biggest differences if any?
The web3 model is based on crowdsourcing the service provisioning. People opt-in to some web3 concept and start providing service. They might for example allow some part of their disk space to be used as part of a distributed storage service, let their CPU to be part of an Internet computer, offering decentralised compute. Sometimes they need to purchase hardware to participate, sometimes they can use whatever they already have.
Some web3 services are implemented completely in software on the blockchains. Such services are for example decentralised exchanges (DEXes). In a DEX setup, participants provide crypto-tokens for providing liquidity.
As reward for providing service or assets, they participants are given tokens that based on service may allow them to vote or may have monetary value.
In web3 sometimes significant amounts of money are needed to develop and market the functionality of the service and getting people onboard.
As blockchains are global, most web3 projects are also global by default. Some are local due to regulatory issues through so you can design local projects as well.
Community currencies on the other hand are tied to some real product (food, water, electricity, right to mill) that the issuer already provides. These products/services tend to be highly local. Nothing is required from local users except accepting the community currency as valid payment method.
Web3 projects are almost exclusively implemented using some blockchain variant, for digital local community currencies both centralised database as well using blockchains are possible implementation options. Community currencies can also be implemented as physical notes although this is costly (printing with safety features on the bills, security during logistics and distribution etc.)
Next: Defence (new topic)