What is Cronos? The Native Token of Crypto.org Chain

What do Paris St Germain, the Philadelphia 76ers, the Montreal Canadiens, Fox Sports, Formula 1 and UFC all have in common? They’re all being sponsored by blockchain behemoth Crypto.com, the platform aiming to accelerate crypto mass adoption through its network Crypto.org Chain.

With its arsenal of well known partners, there’s a good chance you’ve already spotted a Crypto.com logo as you watched your favourite sport. But if you’re not a sports fan, or you’re still not sure exactly who they are, you’re in the right place. 

Here, we give the backstory of Crypto.com, their role in the cryptosphere – and how to use their native token, Cronos, with your Ledger hardware wallet.

A Brief History

Crypto.com started life in 2016 as a crypto payment gateway, with the core proposition of accelerating the world’s transition to cryptocurrency. The platform has since exploded in tandem with the crypto marketplace to become one of the sector’s biggest names, offering an exchange, a range of DeFi services, including crypto lending and borrowing, a non-custodial wallet and even its own NFT marketplace.

What Sets Crypto.org Chain Apart?

In its quest for mass adoption, one of Crypto.com’s central missions is to enable retailers to accept payments in cryptocurrency.

Have you ever wondered why you can’t simply use your crypto assets to buy a coffee? The fact is, high transaction fees and long clearing times for crypto transactions are unappealing to merchants, making them unlikely to adopt crypto payment infrastructure for their customers. This is one key obstacle faced by cryptocurrency on its path to mass adoption.

Crypto.com seeks to overcome this problem by using a blockchain (Crypto.org Chain) designed to enable direct crypto to fiat payments to be made instantly, and with negligible transaction fees. This is achieved by using the network’s native token, CRO, as a settlement asset, allowing users to quickly and easily make regular purchases using crypto.

How Does This Look in Real Life?

Although the adoption phase is still underway, Crypto.com payments are already enabled with a number of big merchants, including Ledger.com, Time Magazine and Travala.com, a list that is set to expand. 

So what does this mean in practical terms? It means that by using the Crypto.Com app, consumers can use a QR code on their mobile device to quickly and easily pay using their crypto assets. By enabling this link between Crypto and real world purchases, Crypto.com hopes to be at the crest of the wave when mass adoption takes place.

Now you know the backstory of Crypto.Com, we can take a closer look at its native Cronos currency, and how you can manage it with your hardware wallet.

What Is Cronos (CRO) And How Does It Work?

CRO tokens run on a proof-of-stake consensus protocol – as you might already know, this means you can stake your own CRO tokens to help the network operate securely, and receive rewards over time. 

If you’re not familiar with this process, think of it as buying shares in a business to allow it to pay for essential maintenance, and then receiving dividends. And since Crypto.com rewards scale increases greatly for larger stakes, there’s a lot to be gained from doing so.

CRO tokens have an important role in their ecosystem, not only incentivizing the security of the network but also functioning as a settlement asset to enable the incredibly fast transactions.

And What About Its Blockchain?

The Crypto.org Chain was developed to support Crypto.com’s variety of services, while offering the speed and efficiency to enable merchants to accept crypto payments on a large scale basis

The open-source and permissionless blockchain utilises a delegated-proof-of-stake protocol to allow everyday users to contribute to the efficiency of the network – and be rewarded – by staking their CRO.

How Can I Use My Cronos with Ledger?

If you already own some CRO in your wallet, you’ll know that you can secure it using your hardware wallet. Up to now, this required you to manage your transactions using a third party interface compatible with Crypto.org blockchain; however, thanks to a recent integration, your CRO account can be visualised and managed directly from within the Ledger Live app. 

So by pairing your hardware wallet with Ledger Live, you not only enjoy the very highest level of security for your CRO tokens, but also the frictionless convenience of using Ledger’s native interface, with no need for anything else.

Looking Ahead

It’s impossible to know what the future holds for Crypto.Com; however, its ability to identify the barriers to mass crypto adoption, paired with its single-minded commitment to overcoming these, suggests the company will be at the crest of whatever wave is coming our way. Ledger’s dedication to providing seamless crypto security that evolves with the market means you’ll be equipped to handle whatever is on the horizon.

Knowledge is power.

Trust yourself and keep on learning! If you enjoy getting to grips with crypto and blockchain, check out our School of Block episode introducing the limitless possibilities of DeFi.