Terra

What is Terra? 

• Terra is a programmable blockchain platform that offers Fiat-pegged stablecoins with the goal of providing a higher level of price stability when it comes to cross-border payment.
• The two tokens that power the network are LUNA, the native cryptocurrency token, and Terra USD (UST), which is a USD stablecoin based on Ethereum. 
• By taking advantage of stablecoins, the Terra ecosystem essentially provides users with lower fees, instantiations settlement, and frictionless cross-border exchanges.

Key Metrics

Ticker	LUNA
Token Name	Terra
Token Type/Protocol	IBC/ERC-20 Multi-Chain
Total Token Supply	970,963,572
Current Circulating Supply	See Coinmarketcap
Market Capitalisation	See Coinmarketcap
Token Creation Date	January 2018
Can it be mined?	No

Who is behind Terra? 

Terra (LUNA) was originally founded in January of 2018 by two co-founders, Daniel Shin and Do Kwon.
Do Kwon ended up taking the position of CEO of Terraform Labs, which is the company behind Terra (LUNA).

On the other hand, before Daniel Shin created Terra, he was the co-founder of Ticket Monster, or TMON, which is a South Korean e-commerce platform.

The main reason for the creation of Terra (LUNA) in 2018 was to facilitate the mass adoption of cryptocurrencies through creating digitally native assets which are price-stable against FIAT currencies.

What is the purpose of Terra? 

The main purpose of Terra (LUNA) is to solve issues surrounding some of the top stablecoins within the cryptocurrency world. 

The Terra protocol functions across different blockchain networks, where the main network seeks to remove any technical limitations on assets through the open financial infrastructure that it provides. 

Insights

• Terra algorithmically keeps a one-to-one peg of UST:USD by automatically adjusting stablecoin supply based on its demand, by incentivizing LUNA holders to swap LUNA and stablecoins at profitable exchange rates.
• Through Terra, you can access Terra USD (UST), which is pegged to USD. However, there are other stablecoins as well, such as 
  • TerraKRW (KRT), pegged to the South Korean WON
  • TerraMNT (MNT), pegged to the Mongolian Tugrik
  • TerraSDR (SDT), pegged to the SDR.
• The Terra network gives developers the opportunity to build smart contracts in Rush, Go, or AssemblyScript. Rush is a programming language that empowers developers to build reliable and efficient software. Go is a statically typed, compiled programming language designed at Google. AssemblyScript is a TypeScript-based programming language optimized for WebAssembly.
• Developers can add additional functionality to the decentralized applications that they develop through the usage of the network’s oracle, which are off-chain sensors that can communicate the data to and from the blockchain network itself.
• The network also has an Anchor protocol, where Terra stablecoin holders can earn rewards and support instant deposits and withdrawals.
• Terra users can also create fungible assets through the Mirror Protocol. To do this, the newly created assets will become synthetics. The mAsset can be locked up greater than 150% of the current asset’s value in the Terra stablecoin or mAsset as collateral.
• Terra requires the usage of GAS, similarly along the lines of Ethereum, to execute the smart contracts. This helps eliminate any potential spamming within the blockchain network and incentivizes miners to execute actions.

Risks

• There are risks associated with the future of cryptocurrency regulation, an example being how Congress introduced 18 bills on Crypto and Blockchain in 2021. Going forward, others might be introduced which impact Terra (LUNA) in a way that gives it a disadvantage. A notable bill as of recently is the Senate’s $1 trillion bipartisan infrastructure bill.
• There are slashing risks that can occur when delegating a stake, as validators and delegators are subject to slashing.

News and Updates

• The Terra blockchain completed Columbus-5, which was one highly anticipated upgrade that is expected to make the system work seamlessly with other cryptocurrency networks.
• Terra has established numerous partnerships with payment platforms, specifically within APAC. As an example, Terra partnered with Chai – a South Korean mobile payments application – to allow purchases made on the platform to be processed via the Terra blockchain network.
• LUNA also integrated with the Inter-Blockchain Communication (IBC) standard, which allows the Terra network to communicate and interact with protocols in the Cosmos ecosystem.
• The total value of assets locked on the Terra network reached $9.4 billion as of October 20, 2021.

Disclaimer:
All investments are speculative and involve substantial risk and uncertainty. Investors should understand the nature of digital assets, including the terms of return and the risk of assets. We encourage investors to fully understand the assets and the risk associated with them prior to making any investment.