AlgorandALGO

Algorand is an open-source, permissionless Layer 1 blockchain founded by cryptographer and MIT professor Silvio Micali. The project originated in 2017 and was designed around a consensus protocol called Pure Proof-of-Stake (PPoS), which uses cryptographic sortition and Verifiable Random Functions to randomly select block proposers and voting committees according to participating stake.

The Algorand mainnet launched in June 2019. ALGO is the native asset of the network and is used for transaction fees, staking and participation in the Algorand ecosystem. The maximum supply is capped at 10 billion ALGO, all of which were created at genesis and are distributed into circulation over time.

Algorand supports smart contracts through the Algorand Virtual Machine (AVM), as well as native asset issuance through Algorand Standard Assets (ASAs), atomic transfers and other protocol-level functionality. The network provides immediate block finality rather than relying on multiple confirmation blocks.

Algorand introduced protocol-level staking rewards in 2025, providing rewards to eligible participants who bring ALGO online and contribute to network consensus. The network's open-source node implementation, developer SDKs and technical documentation are publicly available.

Development and ecosystem activity are supported by the Algorand Foundation and an international community of developers, node operators and users.