The increasingly fragmented crypto market is creating growing challenges for users trying to choose the right blockchain-based tokens. Pantos GmbH, based in Vienna, aims to address this issue. It is important to note that the Vienna-based startup Bitpanda is the driving force behind the project. To achieve its ambitious goals, the development team created a “Multi-Blockchain Token System” called Pantos.
Technology aims to make the PAN coin usable across multiple blockchains
The goal of the new system is to act as a bridge between different blockchain projects. Users, developers and researchers should all benefit. At the same time, Pantos aims to set new standards for transfers between different cryptocurrencies and blockchains — an approach the Austrian provider calls “Cross-Chain Token Transfer.”
Renowned experts contributed to development
Technically, Pantos is designed as an open-source platform. The company enlisted substantial scientific support for its development. Researchers from the Vienna University of Technology were involved in the concept, along with staff from the Austrian Academy of Sciences and the Research Institute for Future Cryptoeconomics (RIAT). Working closely together, the founders and academic partners set out to design a new “Token Atomic Swap Technology” (TAST). Pantos positions TAST to play a central role in the crypto and token ecosystem and aims to be the first model of its kind.
PAN token intended to connect multiple blockchains
Bitpanda hopes the project will also help secure its leadership position in the European crypto market. Unlike many alternative coins, the PAN token within the Pantos system is not tied to a single platform or blockchain. During the Pantos Initial Coin Offering (ICO), demand was high: the company raised around four million euros. The protocol’s ability to transfer coins between blockchains is currently a unique selling point. The initial funding via a Technology ICO capped contributions at 1,500 bitcoins, so the euro equivalent varied with Bitcoin’s price. From the outset, Pantos identified industry players as an important target audience for the open-source technology.
Support for additional blockchains planned quickly
The developers say they deliberately chose this funding approach over typical startup financing because they trusted investors’ understanding of blockchain’s future. Given the ICO proceeds, that assessment proved reasonable. Pantos is designed to enable sustainable cooperation between diverse projects. Ethereum serves as the starting blockchain, but the founders announced in spring 2018 that other blockchains would be added gradually, including Litecoin, Bitcoin, Waves, Ripple, Komodo and others — several early-generation blockchain models.
Key real-time details on PAN usage
To handle high transaction volumes, the system relies on arbitrage trading executed within the network almost in real time, according to the operator. The company expects demand to grow quickly because traders can exploit price differences across platforms and PAN trading pairs. Pantos also provides a proprietary “Blockchain Domination Index” as a tool. This index gives users real-time data on PAN usage and token distribution across connected blockchains.
Further token sale rounds to follow
Regarding the PAN ICO, within four weeks starting on March 21, 2018, the first tranche released 400 million of the total planned one billion tokens. The remaining 600 million were allocated to Bitpanda’s team (10 percent), project partners (9 percent) and ICO participants via an airdrop through Bitpanda. The rest of the tokens will be distributed in future financing rounds (ICOs). The initial sale attracted more than 7,800 users and reached 616 of the targeted 1,500 bitcoins.
Pantos system to be continuously improved through cooperation
The Bitpanda platform and the Ethereum blockchain form the foundation for upcoming PAN transfers. The exact timetable for activating all planned networks is not yet finalized. Preparations at Pantos are underway to bring the TAST procedure online quickly. For a transparent, decentralized implementation, Pantos plans to use technologies such as the Lightning Network, smart contracts and the Atomic Swap approach. The token transfer option is also intended to ensure users are well positioned for technical updates and changes over time. Collaboration with supporters and prominent partners should steadily enhance the Pantos ecosystem — benefiting developers but primarily serving users who will be able to act more flexibly and no longer be tied to a single blockchain infrastructure.