Expansion is a term used when referring to the process of increasing the number and variety of digital assets available within a cryptocurrency network. Expansion typically involves adding new coins, tokens or other forms of digital assets that can be exchanged for goods or services. Expansions may also involve introducing new features such as smart contracts, decentralized applications (dapps) and multi-signature wallets.
In order to expand its capabilities, a cryptocurrency network must upgrade existing infrastructure with more advanced tools and technologies in order to accommodate additional users and transactions. This often requires significant development work from developers working on the project’s codebase as well as investments in hardware resources needed for efficient functioning of the network at scale.
An example would be Ethereum’s transition from proof-of-work consensus algorithm towards proof-of stake consensus mechanism which aim was increase scalability while reducing energy consumption associated with mining activities required by PoW algorithms . Additionally Ethereum has announced plans to move onto an even faster layer 2 scaling solution called sharding where nodes will only need partial information about all transactions happening on blockchain instead entire copy like it is today making transaction throughput much higher compared what we have currently..
The most common purpose behind expanding a cryptocurrency platform is usually related either enabling greater usability through added functionality or improving scalability so that more people are able use it without running into congestion problems leading slow confirmation times & high fees due lack capacity handle traffic demands efficiently . In some cases expansions might also enable completely different types economic models beyond traditional tokenized asset ownership/transfer store value mediums like Bitcoin
