The blockchain for agreements, not just payments.
Irium (IRM) is a mineable, settlement-first blockchain for escrow, agreements, and proof-based commerce. Built from scratch in Rust with no premine, no admin keys, and no override powers.
LIVE MAINNET • SHA-256D POW • SETTLEMENT-FIRST • NO PREMINE • NO ICO • OBJECTIVE-ONLY CONSENSUS
Mining still matters. Irium uses independent SHA-256d Proof-of-Work, and miners secure the base layer that settlement, escrow, agreement anchoring, and proof-based commerce build on top of.
Block Time: 2 min (120 s) • Reward: 50 IRM • Halving: 1.05M blocks • Supply Cap: 100M IRM • Mainnet Launch: Jan 5, 2026 • Node: v1.9.49
Most blockchains optimize for transfers, speculation, or generic payment rails. Irium is built around a narrower and more practical goal: trust-minimized settlement for agreements, escrow, and proof-based commerce — and that settlement layer is live on mainnet today.
The chain runs as an independent SHA-256d Proof-of-Work network built from scratch in Rust. Its settlement layer, marketplace, reputation system, and BTC atomic swaps (SPV-verified, no custodian) are all live since block 23,850. Block time is 2 minutes (120 s), activated at the V2 hard fork at block 24,250. Difficulty adjustment uses LWMA v2 with a 30-block window, active since block 19,740.
Irium is not a fork, does not rely on admin keys, and does not include freeze, seizure, or centralized dispute powers in consensus. The desktop app (Irium Core v1.0.77) bundles the node, wallet, miner, settlement hub, and marketplace in a single install for Windows, macOS, and Linux.
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Irium escrow protects both parties without a middleman.
Get paid automatically when you deliver — without trusting a stranger or paying a platform fee.
Neither party goes first. Lock IRM on-chain, send payment off-chain, release enforced by the chain.
A plain-English walkthrough of a real freelancer–client agreement, step by step.
Chain, mining, settlement, marketplace, reputation, multisig, BTC atomic swaps, and the desktop wallet are all live on mainnet. v1.9.49 is the current node release; Irium Core v1.0.77 is the current desktop app.
Bootstrap depends on signed peers and anchors rather than DNS infrastructure, supporting a resilient mainnet-first network model.
Peer discovery is designed to recover from churn and infrastructure loss while favoring durable, reachable network participants.
Proof-of-work handshakes, reputation, and peer controls are intended to keep botnet-style spam out of the core network path.
Signed chain anchors give new nodes a stronger bootstrap safety model without turning consensus into a subjective governance system.
Relay rewards strengthen transaction propagation without introducing inflation-heavy network subsidies.
SPV and NiPoPoW-oriented architecture support future light-client flows and lower-resource verification models.
The live chain already supports metadata anchoring for timestamps, hashes, and proof-of-existence style commitments.
Genesis allocation is locked on-chain under visible vesting rules rather than hidden admin promises or discretionary unlock paths.
Agreement-hash anchoring is part of the settlement-first direction so counterparties can bind commercial terms to an objective chain reference.
The full settlement layer is live on mainnet. Buyers and sellers lock funds on-chain; an attestor submits a proof of delivery; the chain enforces automatic release or refund.
The irium-wallet watch --auto-release command monitors open settlements and triggers release or refund automatically when the on-chain conditions are met.
Per-milestone fund and release wallet aliases let contractors and clients stage payments against defined deliverables — enforced by the chain, not by a platform.
Trustless IRM ↔ BTC swaps using SPV header relay. Live since block 23,850. No wrapped tokens, no bridge, no custodian. LTC atomic swaps coming soon.
Five standard proof kinds and an on-chain reputation anchoring system are live. Approved attestors submit cryptographic delivery proofs; consensus validates deterministically.
2-of-2 and 2-of-3 multisig wallets, BIP32/BIP39 hierarchical key derivation, and confidential agreement anchoring are all live on mainnet.
The on-chain marketplace, offer registry, and reputation system are live. Sellers list offers; buyers take them; settlement enforces the outcome — all without a central platform.
Auxiliary Proof-of-Work merged mining activates at block 26,500. Existing SHA-256d ASIC operators can mine IRM as a secondary chain alongside Bitcoin at zero extra electricity cost.
Irium separates production reality from development direction and future roadmap work.
Mineable Proof-of-Work infrastructure for a settlement-first blockchain.
OTC trading for IRM is live via the official Telegram group with escrow-supported flow for safer peer-to-peer settlement.
That OTC path reflects the broader direction: Irium is being built for trust-minimized outcomes, not only token transfers.
Join OTC TelegramNo blockchain knowledge required to understand these answers.
No. You need a wallet address (which the wallet tool creates in one command) and an agreement with your counterparty. You do not need to understand how it works at a technical level. The process is similar to an online payment.
Every agreement has two defined outcomes: a release condition and a refund timeout. If the work is delivered and the payer releases, the payee receives the funds. If the payer withholds despite delivery, the payee can submit verifiable proof and the chain policy can force release. If nobody acts before the timeout, the payer's funds return automatically. Funds cannot be locked permanently.
The escrow is a transaction output locked by a Hash Time-Locked Contract on-chain. Irium Labs cannot touch it. Nobody can touch it. The only ways to move the funds are: the recipient reveals the secret, or the timeout passes and the funder reclaims it. Both are enforced by math, not by any server or company.
Two on-chain transactions total: one to fund, one to release or refund. Each costs approximately 0.001 IRM in network fees — currently negligible. No platform fee, no percentage taken, no account subscription.
Irium is a decentralized blockchain with no company controlling access. There are no geo-restrictions built into the protocol. You are responsible for complying with the laws in your jurisdiction regarding cryptocurrency use.
Download the pre-built binary from GitHub Releases. Run irium-wallet init to create a wallet, then follow the settlement walkthrough. If you get stuck, ask in Telegram.