What is Soulbound tokens (SBT)
About this publication
Bytwork publishes Dmitry Kotov's analysis of Soulbound Tokens (SBT), the non-transferable identity tokens proposed by Vitalik Buterin. The article covers how SBTs could be used for digital identity, reputation systems, and decentralized governance.
Dmitry Kotov's role
Dmitry Kotov comments on Soulbound Tokens and explains the concept for a general audience.
Background
Bytwork covers blockchain technology for a Russian-speaking audience. Soulbound tokens entered public discussion in mid-2022, after a paper co-authored by Vitalik Buterin proposed non-transferable tokens as a foundation for on-chain identity.
The idea addresses a real gap. A transferable token proves only that you hold it, which makes it useless for anything that should not be purchasable — a degree, a professional licence, a reputation, a membership. A non-transferable one is bound to an account and can encode those. The unresolved problems are equally real: an identity permanently attached to an address is also permanently exposed, and there is no clean answer yet for revocation, key loss, or the surveillance surface a full public record of a person's credentials would create.
Originally published on bytwork.com in Russian.
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