What is ARPA (ARPA) and how does it work?
ARPA (ARPA) is the native token of ARPA Network, a decentralized cryptographic network focused on privacy, security, and fairness in blockchain applications. ARPA Network was originally known for research in secure multi-party computation (MPC) and has since evolved into a central infrastructure layer that provides verifiable randomness and threshold cryptography for Web3. Its solutions are designed for use cases such as on-chain gaming, NFT minting, DAO governance, DeFi protocols, and cross-chain systems.
At the core of ARPA Network is Randcast, a decentralized and verifiable random number generation (RNG) protocol. Randcast employs threshold BLS signatures and a distributed node architecture to generate randomness that is unpredictable, resistant to manipulation, and publicly verifiable. This ensures that no individual node or validator can manipulate the results, making ARPA particularly valuable for applications where fairness and transparency are critical, such as lotteries, loot boxes, and validator selection.
The ARPA token powers the economic and security model of the network. It is used to pay for network services, incentivize node operators, and secure the protocol through staking and penalties for misbehavior. As the adoption of verifiable randomness and secure computation grows across multiple blockchains, ARPA serves as a utility token that aligns developers, node operators, and users within a shared decentralized infrastructure.