Onchain Economy

Definition ∞ The onchain economy refers to all economic activities, transactions, and value transfers that occur directly on a blockchain ledger. This encompasses decentralized finance applications, non-fungible token marketplaces, and various other protocols where operations are transparently recorded and executed by smart contracts. It represents a shift from traditional off-chain financial systems to a digitally verifiable and programmable financial infrastructure. The onchain economy prioritizes transparency and immutability.
Context ∞ The onchain economy is experiencing rapid expansion, driven by innovation in decentralized applications and increasing user adoption. The situation involves continuous development of new protocols and infrastructure to support more complex economic interactions. A critical future development is the integration of real-world assets into onchain systems and the establishment of clearer regulatory frameworks for these digital economies.