{"id":39774,"date":"2022-02-20T15:35:59","date_gmt":"2022-02-20T14:35:59","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.coinpro.ch\/uncategorized\/what-is-a-blockchain-basics-and-functionality\/"},"modified":"2026-03-29T14:34:27","modified_gmt":"2026-03-29T12:34:27","slug":"what-is-a-blockchain-basics-and-functionality","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.coinpro.ch\/en\/knowledge\/what-is-a-blockchain-basics-and-functionality\/","title":{"rendered":"What is a blockchain? Basics, How It Works & Applications (2026)"},"content":{"rendered":"

Since the release of Bitcoin, blockchain has undergone a major transformation in the media. More and more institutions are recognizing the benefits of the technology behind blockchain, independent of cryptocurrencies. Even China has recently begun to increasingly test blockchain technology, although all transactions with cryptocurrencies are banned in China. This shows how important it could become from a technological perspective. But what is a blockchain<\/strong> anyway and how does it work<\/strong>? We’ll address these questions in more detail in this article.<\/p>\n

What is a Blockchain? – Definition and Explanation <\/h2>\n

Before we go into what a blockchain is<\/strong>, let’s first look at the term itself. The term \u201cblockchain\u201d can be translated into \u201cblock chain\u201d. What does not seem very intuitive at first glance, makes more sense when looking at the blockchain from a technical point of view. It is a kind of linked list – so quasi a chain that is extended block by block. <\/p>\n

With its block-based structure, the blockchain represents a decentralized database<\/strong>. This means that the blockchain is not maintained via a central server, but through the connection of many computers that can be distributed worldwide. The conditions under which a computer participates in the blockchain depend, among other things, on the cryptocurrency<\/a> itself and the underlying consensus mechanism (Proof-of-Work or Proof-of-Stake<\/a>).
\nThe world’s largest and best-known cryptocurrency, Bitcoin<\/a>, uses the Proof-of-Work consensus mechanism, for example. In this case, miners verify the transactions on the blockchain. Because the data of a transaction is stored distributed across thousands of computers, a single party cannot simply manipulate the data in the database. This would be noticed by the other participants in the blockchain.<\/p>\n

Technically, each block in the chain contains a secure hash<\/strong> of the previous block. Security plays a major role anyway, so there are the following three security features for each block: <\/p>\n