As blockchain technology continues to evolve, new concepts and innovations are emerging to revolutionize the world of cryptocurrency.
One of these new concepts are the soulbound tokens ( SBT token), which have the potential to improve use cases of digital assets.
In this article, we will explore what soulbound tokens are, how they work, and different soulbound token implementations.
What are Soulbound Tokens?
Soulbound tokens are a special kind of digital asset linked to a user or wallet and cannot be moved or exchanged. They are unique non-fungible tokens (NFTs) created on a blockchain network and permanently associated with the user that mints this token.
You can resold NFTs in secondary markets or transfer them between addresses while these type of tokens will stay in the minted address.
Because of that, soulbound tokens nft are highly secure and immutable.
So, soulbound token meaning refers to something that is permanently connected or linked to a character or account, often in a way that cannot be undone.
How do Soulbound Tokens Work?
You create Soulbound tokens on a blockchain network using smart contracts. These soulbound token contracts contain the logic that determines the ownership and usage rights of the soulbound token.
Once the soulbound token is created, it is linked to a specific user or account and will belong to that user forever.
Soulbound Tokens Use Cases
SBTs are non transferable and have a wide range of potential use cases due to their unique properties.
Lets see some real examples of their uses:
Gaming
You can find SBT soulbound tokens in the gaming industry as in-game assets or to represent the actual player’s gaming identity.
We are in an early stage but there are platforms developing this concept of gamers identity such as Dequest or Soulbound.
This kind of platform provides you two major benefits.
- In one hand, it awards you NFTs and levels up your soulbound token while you complete quests in different games.
- On the other hand, it lets you build a reputation as a gamer across different games.
- Digital Identity Token: They are a form of digital identity too, where each user has a unique token that represents their identity on a blockchain network. This can help prevent identity theft and fraud by providing a secure and verifiable way to prove ownership of digital assets. Binance use this concept for users who finished their KYC process:
There are plenty of more use cases that are still under development, for example:
For example; imagine a University degree. A university could provide a graduate with their certificate as an SBT. Currently, if a university was to give out a degree as a standard NFT, the graduate would theoretically be able to sell it due to the nature of the technology. On the other hand, if it was a Soulbound token, they would be unable to sell it or transfer it. This characteristic is specially valuable for an educational institution.
Another great example is using SBTs as event tickets. Event organizers could make sure a person truly went to a conference or event as they would have an SBT to prove it.
The common factor between all these examples is that a user needs legitimate proof of an event or ownership that they have and cannot be transferred.
Conclusion
Soulbound tokens are a groundbreaking innovation in the world of blockchain technology and have the potential to transform various industries by providing unique and secure ways to represent ownership and control over digital assets.
We mention some real use cases that are in their first stages and many others that still need development.
In my opinion, to see soulbound tokens in our daily lives, we still need time and development for the technology to evolve so it’s more user friendly and the masses can adopt them.
During my recent interaction with the Dequest dApp, I had the opportunity to utilize soulbound tokens and it was really easy to do the account setup process and receive my initial soulbound token.
I did some initial quests but since the app is still in beta I didn’t have the opportunity to play a game, win a quest and see some in-game rewards but for sure, when a first release is available I will give it a try.
I have high expectations for the integration of this technology with other web3 concepts, such as zero knowledge proof, as I believe they will complement each other exceptionally well.
We are always looking for Web3 talent !
Mighty Block is one of the partners of Forte, a platform to enable game publishers to easily integrate blockchain technologies into their games. We believe blockchain will enable new economic and creative opportunities for gamers around the world and have assembled a team of proven veterans from across the industry (Kabam, Unity, GarageGames, ngmoco, Twitch, Disney), as well as a $100M developer fund & $725M funding, to help make it happen. That’s where you come into play.
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