Menu
The Chia Plot
  • Blog
  • How-To
  • About
  • Contact
  • Security
  • Discord
The Chia Plot
Basket of CATs

A nuanced look at Chia Asset Tokens (CATs)

Posted on November 17, 2021November 18, 2021 by Grizzo

The Chia Plot community member Grizzo has recently written up his thoughts about Chia Asset Tokens (CATs) and has shared them with us, along with a very useful technical primer on how CATs work. The point about melting stablecoins is a very good one, and I think that mechanism might open up some interesting problems for projects relying on a fixed supply.

The Chia team recently announced the beta release of their equivalent to Ethereum tokens [(ERC20 and associated derivative upgrades ERC223, ERC777, ERC1155)] https://www.gemini.com/cryptopedia/ethereum-token-standards-erc777-erc1155-erc223-erc1337. This standard ushers in a new era for Chia where real businesses can be built by allowing for advanced smart contract programming.

The Chia team has created something very interesting in the way that CATs work through splitting the token into two parts, the CAT1 standard itself defining how a token is behaves and operates, and the TAIL, the program that contains the unique id (GENESIS_ID) and it’s issuance characteristics. The team created 3 reference TAILs that demonstrate a full range of things that are possible – [fixed supply, anything, delegated] https://github.com/Chia-Network/chialisp-web/blob/d3b0dfacd2314177f0fe441060789d3f6a57dab2/docs/puzzles/cats.md.

The ancillary effect of creating all this flexibility is the nightmare it creates for any exchange that might want to support Chia and CATs. First off we need to consider the basic question, how many CAT tokens are there for a given issuance. This is not at all easy to calculate! First of CATs can be melted by users. When a CAT is created using the default standard you need to use 1000 mojos to create 1 CAT. Since there are 1,000,000,000,000 mojos to a Chia (that’s 1 trillion) a single Chia can create a token with 1,000,000,000 (that’s 1 billion) tokens. If you want more than 1 billion you need to spend an increasing amount of Chia. 10 XCH to get 10 billion, 100 XCH to get 100 billion and so on. That implies that all tokens have an intrinsic value of 1000 mojos and the price really shouldn’t ever fall below that floor, because if it did you could swoop them up and convert to XCH using the melt operation and make money. This ability to melt is a nightmare for calculating total supply. If users can melt tokens then you need to walk the entire blockchain to figure out how many of a given CAT exist.

The problem is even more pronounced if a CAT is created with some other TAIL. The Chia team indicated that Stablecoins should use a TAIL where the supply can be increased at will. However melting a Stablecoin seems to imply that there could be an imbalance between the creating company and it’s ledger of assets.

It will be interesting to see how this all plays out.

Related

4 thoughts on “A nuanced look at Chia Asset Tokens (CATs)”

  1. Anonymous says:
    November 17, 2021 at 1:10 pm

    Do follow up and get the teams views… this is still so cool

    Reply
  2. Anonymous says:
    November 17, 2021 at 4:20 pm

    If calculating asset token supply is such a “nightmare”, sounds like an API service opportunity 🙂

    Reply
  3. Anonymous says:
    November 18, 2021 at 1:51 pm

    I believe that Grizzo is incorrect to believe that all CATs can be melted by whoever owns some.

    The owner of a given CAT coin decides when and how to do a transaction with it, but in order to melt or burn it they need to execute the TAIL, which was written by the creator of the CAT. It would be trivial to require a cryptographic key in order to melt the CAT, so only the creator can do so. Of course they also need to be the owner of a given coin in order to authorize such a transaction, so the supply that’s out in the market would be predictable.

    Reply
  4. calum says:
    November 19, 2021 at 6:48 am

    It would be an interesting case study to look at how much XCH it would require to cover a country’s entire currency via a CAT. Assuming that e.g. the USA converted the entire USD in circulation and converted it to a USD CAT how much XCH would that require?

    Reply

Leave a Reply Cancel reply

Advertisement

Recent Posts

  • Crypto is burning down – Chia seems fine
  • Chia CAT upgrade fiasco part 2 – Was I wrong?
  • WTF just happened?? CAT1 to CAT2 “upgrade”
  • The era of the Chia NFT is upon us
  • Chia Blockchain 1.4.0 released – NFTs and DIDs oh my
  • Discussion
  • Facts About Farmers
  • How-To
  • Information
  • News
  • pools
  • Security
  • Trademark
  • Trading
  • Uncategorized

Dark Mode Switch

©2021 The Chia Plot - Donate XCH / MRMT / SBX @ xch1p4440d6zwu9ryta2vx073lq2ge3s29d37kskz6t34jp085e8srjqnk0gcr
We use cookies on our website to give you the most relevant experience by remembering your preferences and repeat visits. By clicking “Accept All”, you consent to the use of ALL the cookies. However, you may visit "Cookie Settings" to provide a controlled consent.
Cookie SettingsAccept All
Manage consent

Privacy Overview

This website uses cookies to improve your experience while you navigate through the website. Out of these, the cookies that are categorized as necessary are stored on your browser as they are essential for the working of basic functionalities of the website. We also use third-party cookies that help us analyze and understand how you use this website. These cookies will be stored in your browser only with your consent. You also have the option to opt-out of these cookies. But opting out of some of these cookies may affect your browsing experience.
Necessary
Always Enabled
Necessary cookies are absolutely essential for the website to function properly. These cookies ensure basic functionalities and security features of the website, anonymously.
CookieDurationDescription
cookielawinfo-checkbox-advertisement1 yearThe cookie is set by GDPR cookie consent to record the user consent for the cookies in the category "Advertisement".
cookielawinfo-checkbox-analytics11 monthsThis cookie is set by GDPR Cookie Consent plugin. The cookie is used to store the user consent for the cookies in the category "Analytics".
cookielawinfo-checkbox-functional11 monthsThe cookie is set by GDPR cookie consent to record the user consent for the cookies in the category "Functional".
cookielawinfo-checkbox-necessary11 monthsThis cookie is set by GDPR Cookie Consent plugin. The cookies is used to store the user consent for the cookies in the category "Necessary".
cookielawinfo-checkbox-others11 monthsThis cookie is set by GDPR Cookie Consent plugin. The cookie is used to store the user consent for the cookies in the category "Other.
cookielawinfo-checkbox-performance11 monthsThis cookie is set by GDPR Cookie Consent plugin. The cookie is used to store the user consent for the cookies in the category "Performance".
JSESSIONIDsessionUsed by sites written in JSP. General purpose platform session cookies that are used to maintain users' state across page requests.
viewed_cookie_policy11 monthsThe cookie is set by the GDPR Cookie Consent plugin and is used to store whether or not user has consented to the use of cookies. It does not store any personal data.
Functional
Functional cookies help to perform certain functionalities like sharing the content of the website on social media platforms, collect feedbacks, and other third-party features.
CookieDurationDescription
na_id1 year 1 monthThis cookie is set by Addthis.com to enable sharing of links on social media platforms like Facebook and Twitter
na_rn1 monthThis cookie is used to recognize the visitor upon re-entry. This cookie allows to collect information on user behaviour and allows sharing function provided by Addthis.com
na_sc_e1 monthThis cookie is used to recognize the visitor upon re-entry. This cookie allows to collect information on user behaviour and allows sharing function provided by Addthis.com
na_sr1 monthThis cookie is set by Addthis.com. This cookie is used for sharing of links on social media platforms.
na_srp1 minuteThis cookie is used to recognize the visitor upon re-entry. This cookie allows to collect information on user behaviour and allows sharing function provided by Addthis.com
na_tc1 year 1 monthThis cookie is set by the provider Addthis. This cookie is used for social media sharing tracking service.
ouid1 year 1 monthThe cookie is set by Addthis which enables the content of the website to be shared across different networking and social sharing websites.
Performance
Performance cookies are used to understand and analyze the key performance indexes of the website which helps in delivering a better user experience for the visitors.
CookieDurationDescription
d3 monthsThis cookie tracks anonymous information on how visitors use the website.
Analytics
Analytical cookies are used to understand how visitors interact with the website. These cookies help provide information on metrics the number of visitors, bounce rate, traffic source, etc.
CookieDurationDescription
__gads1 year 24 daysThis cookie is set by Google and stored under the name dounleclick.com. This cookie is used to track how many times users see a particular advert which helps in measuring the success of the campaign and calculate the revenue generated by the campaign. These cookies can only be read from the domain that it is set on so it will not track any data while browsing through another sites.
_ga2 yearsThis cookie is installed by Google Analytics. The cookie is used to calculate visitor, session, campaign data and keep track of site usage for the site's analytics report. The cookies store information anonymously and assign a randomly generated number to identify unique visitors.
_gat_gtag_UA_199099757_11 minuteThis cookie is set by Google and is used to distinguish users.
_gid1 dayThis cookie is installed by Google Analytics. The cookie is used to store information of how visitors use a website and helps in creating an analytics report of how the website is doing. The data collected including the number visitors, the source where they have come from, and the pages visted in an anonymous form.
CONSENT16 years 4 months 5 daysThese cookies are set via embedded youtube-videos. They register anonymous statistical data on for example how many times the video is displayed and what settings are used for playback.No sensitive data is collected unless you log in to your google account, in that case your choices are linked with your account, for example if you click “like” on a video.
Advertisement
Advertisement cookies are used to provide visitors with relevant ads and marketing campaigns. These cookies track visitors across websites and collect information to provide customized ads.
CookieDurationDescription
advanced_ads_browser_width1 monthThis cookie is set by Advanced ads plugin.This cookie is used to measure and store the user browser width for adverts.
anj3 monthsNo description available.
CMID1 yearThe cookie is set by CasaleMedia. The cookie is used to collect information about the usage behavior for targeted advertising.
CMPRO3 monthsThis cookie is set by Casalemedia and is used for targeted advertisement purposes.
CMPS3 monthsThis cookie is set by Casalemedia and is used for targeted advertisement purposes.
CMRUM31 yearThis cookie is set by Casalemedia and is used for targeted advertisement purposes.
CMST1 dayThe cookie is set by CasaleMedia. The cookie is used to collect information about the usage behavior for targeted advertising.
DSID1 hourThis cookie is setup by doubleclick.net. This cookie is used by Google to make advertising more engaging to users and are stored under doubleclick.net. It contains an encrypted unique ID.
i1 yearThe purpose of the cookie is not known yet.
IDE1 year 24 daysUsed by Google DoubleClick and stores information about how the user uses the website and any other advertisement before visiting the website. This is used to present users with ads that are relevant to them according to the user profile.
KADUSERCOOKIE3 monthsThe cookie is set by pubmatic.com for identifying the visitors' website or device from which they visit PubMatic's partners' website.
KTPCACOOKIE1 dayThis cookie is set by pubmatic.com for the purpose of checking if third-party cookies are enabled on the user's website.
mc1 year 1 monthThis cookie is associated with Quantserve to track anonymously how a user interact with the website.
test_cookie15 minutesThis cookie is set by doubleclick.net. The purpose of the cookie is to determine if the user's browser supports cookies.
uid1 year 1 monthThis cookie is used to measure the number and behavior of the visitors to the website anonymously. The data includes the number of visits, average duration of the visit on the website, pages visited, etc. for the purpose of better understanding user preferences for targeted advertisments.
uuid3 monthsTo optimize ad relevance by collecting visitor data from multiple websites such as what pages have been loaded.
uuid23 monthsThis cookies is set by AppNexus. The cookies stores information that helps in distinguishing between devices and browsers. This information us used to select advertisements served by the platform and assess the performance of the advertisement and attribute payment for those advertisements.
VISITOR_INFO1_LIVE5 months 27 daysThis cookie is set by Youtube. Used to track the information of the embedded YouTube videos on a website.
YSCsessionThis cookies is set by Youtube and is used to track the views of embedded videos.
yt-remote-connected-devicesneverThese cookies are set via embedded youtube-videos.
yt-remote-device-idneverThese cookies are set via embedded youtube-videos.
Others
Other uncategorized cookies are those that are being analyzed and have not been classified into a category as yet.
CookieDurationDescription
__gpi1 year 24 daysNo description
adImpCountpastNo description
C3UID5 yearsNo description available.
C3UID-9245 yearsNo description
fc5 months 27 daysNo description available.
pfpastNo description
pxs5 months 27 daysNo description available.
SAVE & ACCEPT
Powered by CookieYes Logo