Elrond is a blockchain protocol that seeks to offer extremely fast transaction speeds by using sharding. The project describes itself as a technology ecosystem for the new internet, which includes fintech, decentralized finance, and the Internet of Things. Its smart contracts execution platform is reportedly capable of 15,000 transactions per second, six-second latency, and a $0.001 transaction cost. The blockchain has a native token known as eGold or EGLD, that is used for paying network fees, staking, and rewarding validators. Elrond was first announced in August 2019, and its mainnet went live in July 2020.