Open-Source Project Baseledger Testnet Goes Live
September 2021
Over the past year, the Baseline Protocol has continued to define the required standards to guide new system integrations. This week, the much anticipated Baseledger testnet went live and is now available to the public. Following the release, ConsenSys Mesh stated that it will join Provide, Unibright, and other companies to support and utilize Baseledger in its projects that aim to be compliant with the Baseline Protocol. With all this activity and my continued efforts in the decentralized applications (dApps) sector, I sat down with John Wolpert of Baseline Protocol to learn more.
For those looking to meet with the team or begin building, on October 1st-3rd, the companies will host the upcoming EthAtlanta event and hackathon to help developers begin utilizing the network.
Baseledger, an open-source project initially developed by Unibright and Provide, is the first public network designed for storing and managing baseline proofs, which are an essential part of synchronizing systems of record across the internet in accordance with the Baseline Protocol. The high-performance, high-availability network provides verified systems integration services at a very low cost, without requiring companies to spend time and capital setting it up. Baseledger complies with the Baseline Protocol to ensure that no data is moved from companies’ systems of the record onto any kind of blockchain, and proofs cannot be used by an observer to learn anything about companies’ confidential information, relationships, or business activities. The network is secure, always-on, and anchored to the Ethereum blockchain using a cryptographic technique called ZK Rollups to prevent tampering with the proofs.
Users storing proofs on the network enjoy fixed transaction fees, denominated and paid in fiat currency. They do not need to hold any form of cryptocurrency to pay for the service. Network governance and transaction settlement are powered by $UBT, short for Universal Business Token, an Ethereum ERC20 token originally issued by Unibright in 2017. Since transaction fees remain stable even if $UBT rises in value, organizations can use Baseledger without concern over price volatility.
“Provide is contributing to the Baseline Protocol to set a new standard in enterprise synchronization. The release of the Baseledger testnet and core bits of the Provide software stack today positions enterprises of all sizes and technological capabilities to adopt the standard and apply it to their own systems and processes. Baseledger adds additional security to the Provide stack to enable a novel zk-zk rollup implementation, which is critical for scaling enterprise DeFi and building new baselined fintech products and services” said Kyle Thomas, CEO of Provide.
Provide open-sourced key components required for baseline-compliant systems integration, including Ident, NChain, Privacy, and Vault, to coincide with today’s launch of the Baseledger testnet. This release, which is now available on GitHub, allows developers to quickly synchronize databases, ERP, CRM, accounting, compliance, and other information management systems across any set of companies. The testnet will operate for several months leading up to the launch of the production network, which will be powered by $UBT.
John Wolpert, ConsenSys product executive and chair of the Baseline Protocol technical steering committee said,
“One of the most important things about open standards and open source is that they help prevent vendor lock-in and lower costs for businesses. But all projects like this require reliable, affordable, and straightforward tools in order to achieve wide adoption. The Baseledger network and the Provide platform are the first to make the benefits of baselining accessible to everyone.”
Marten Jung, CEO of Unibright, added,
“With Baseledger we provide the missing link for enterprises aiming for a productive deployment of the Baseline Protocol across a variety of business cases at enterprise scale, powered by an incentivized ecosystem based on $UBT. Baseledger empowers enterprises to overcome restrictions of current public ledgers in terms of transaction costs, performance, compliance, integration and coordination”.
Companies are already starting to use the Baseline Protocol to reduce fraud and disputes, ensure regulatory and tax compliance, synchronize accounts payable and get access to more favorable financing terms from both traditional and DeFi sources.
Andrei Semonov, Director of Innovation at Coke One North America (CONA) said,
“CONA has been working with Provide and Unibright for the past year on the Baseline Protocol. I am excited to see progress on Baseledger and to be one of the first node operators on the testnet.”
ServiceNow, a leading cloud platform that helps companies deliver digital workflows in enterprise operations, has also been working with Provide over the last year. “I am convinced that the Provide technology is able to support many ServiceNow use cases that require business process synchronization and baselining. This enables our customers with the ability to scale integrations across their business networks while effectively addressing enterprise security requirements,” said Nicola Attico, Senior Advisory Consultant at ServiceNow.
About ConsenSys Mesh
Founded in 2015 by Ethereum co-founder Joseph Lubin, ConsenSys Mesh is an accelerator, incubator, investor, and enabler of blockchain technology solutions. Their mission is to champion global adoption and awareness of groundbreaking technologies in Web 3.0 and DeFi.
Mesh includes a portfolio of 130+ equity and token positions, runs the Tachyon startup accelerator, operates an R&D team making meaningful contributions to the Ethereum ecosystem, and has successfully incubated companies such as Gitcoin, Decrypt, Treum, ConsenSys Software Inc., and more. This interconnected network is a place for the next generation of blockchain technologies to take shape and great entrepreneurs to flourish.
About the Baseline Protocol
The Baseline Protocol is an open-source initiative that combines advances in cryptography, messaging, and blockchain to deliver secure and private business processes at low cost using the public Mainnet for event ordering, data consistency, and workflow integrity. The protocol will enable confidential and complex collaboration between enterprises without moving any sensitive data from traditional systems of record. The work is governed by the EEA Community Projects, which leverages the strengths of both the Enterprise Ethereum Alliance (EEA)’s and OASIS Open’s leadership role in open standards and open source.
