BitShares (BTS)

BitShares is an open-source, public, blockchain-based real-time financial platform. It provides a built-in decentralized asset exchange, similar to New York Stock Exchange but for cryptocurrencies and without the need to trust a central authority to handle all the funds, that can execute trading using an international network of computers in which anyone can take part. BitShares also provides a cryptocurrency token called "BTS", which can be transferred between accounts and is used to collect fees for network operations and as a collateral for loans. This platform was designed by American programmer and entrepreneur Dan Larimar, and launched in July 2014. Since March 2016 the project is a part of Microsoft Azure Blockchain as a Service package.