[Crypto projects](https://revain.org/projects/) › I/O Coin

# I/O Coin (IOC): how it works, supply and reviews

## In short

- **Type**: Layer-1 blockchain with its own native coin, IOC.
- **Initial distribution**: All coins mined openly during a two-week X11 proof-of-work period; no founder allocation.
- **Risks and caveats**: IOC had not been listed on any exchange for close to a year as of January 2025, according to the project's own community letter.
- **Checked**: 1 November 2026

## Key facts

- **Ticker**: IOC
- **Official site**: [iocoin.io](https://iocoin.io/)

Key facts checked on 1 November 2026 against official sources.

## What is I/O Coin

I/O Coin (IOC) is a proof-of-stake layer-1 blockchain launched on 24 July 2014 with no premine and no ICO. Its DIONS protocol adds on-chain names (aliases), AES-256 encrypted messaging and data records of up to 1 MB.

## Network and consensus

| Parameter | Details |
|---|---|
| Type | Layer-1 blockchain with its own native coin, IOC. |
| Consensus | Proof of stake since about block 24,400; proof-of-work (X11) mining was capped at 12,815 blocks. |
| Launched | Genesis block on 24 July 2014, fair launch with no premine. |
| Block time | About 66 seconds on average over the last 1,000 blocks (1 November 2026). |
| Programming language | C++; source code under the MIT licence. |
| Smart contracts | No smart-contract layer on mainnet; DIONS records carry names, encrypted messages and payloads up to 1 MB. |
| Runs on | Own mainnet, protocol version 60022; current desktop wallet release DIONS Sirius v5.0.0.0. |

## Supply and issuance

| Parameter | Details |
|---|---|
| Initial distribution | All coins mined openly during a two-week X11 proof-of-work period; no founder allocation. |
| Issuance | 1.5 IOC per proof-of-stake block. |
| Inflation | 3.15% annualised from the last 24 hours (explorer, 1 November 2026). |

On 1 November 2026: 22,735,675 IOC in circulation (source: [I/O Coin explorer (chain.iocoin.io)](https://chain.iocoin.io/)).

## What IOC is used for

- Staking: holders stake IOC to produce blocks; there is no minimum stake.
- Relaying: nodes can relay headers and earn from a zero balance.
- Aliases: IOC can be sent to a readable on-chain alias instead of an address.

## Who develops and governs I/O Coin

- **Foundation**: I/O Digital Research Foundation, a nonprofit research group that stewards I/O Coin and DIONS.
- **Governance**: The foundation describes itself as a nonprofit research group focused on blockchain, AI and encryption.
- **Open source**: Node and wallet code is public on GitHub (IOCoin/DIONS).
- **Developer**: Community-driven development; in January 2025 the project proposed an outside code review of DVM and Nighthawk.
- **Company**: No ICO; the project says it is funded by its community.

## History

| Date | Event |
|---|---|
| 24 July 2014 | The I/O Coin genesis block is mined. |
| 2 August 2014 | About 16 million IOC have been mined under proof of work; the chain then moves to proof of stake. |
| October 2014 | An HTML5 wallet with interchangeable skins is released. |
| 2017 | The full DIONS system (names, encrypted messaging, data records) launches on mainnet. |
| 20 January 2025 | An open community letter says IOC has not been listed on exchanges for close to a year and proposes a code review and new development paths. |
| 22 June 2026 | Widget Wallet 0.1.1-RC10 is released. |

## Security and audits

- Legacy DIONS records are encrypted with AES-256 and RSA-4096, according to the project.
- The Widget Wallet keeps its RPC port on localhost only.

## Security incidents

No security incident is recorded in the sources checked on 1 November 2026 (the company’s own channels and incident databases): [defillama.com/hacks](https://defillama.com/hacks), [hacked.slowmist.io](https://hacked.slowmist.io/), [rekt.news/leaderboard](https://rekt.news/leaderboard/), [wizrig.medium.com/feed](https://wizrig.medium.com/feed), [github.com/IOCoin/DIONS/releases](https://github.com/IOCoin/DIONS/releases), [t.me/s/iocoin_official](https://t.me/s/iocoin_official)

## Risks and caveats

- IOC had not been listed on any exchange for close to a year as of January 2025, according to the project's own community letter.
- DIONS 2.0 is only on a public testnet; mainnet has not launched.
- Several initiatives (DVM, Nighthawk, Chameleon) remain unfinished, as the project states.
- The project blog's latest post is the 20 January 2025 community letter.

## Official links

- Website: [iocoin.io](https://iocoin.io/)
- Source code: [github.com/IOCoin/DIONS](https://github.com/IOCoin/DIONS)
- Block explorer: [chain.iocoin.io](https://chain.iocoin.io/)
- Docs: [i-o-digital-foundation.gitbook.io/ioc](https://i-o-digital-foundation.gitbook.io/ioc)
- Blog: [wizrig.medium.com](https://wizrig.medium.com)

## Questions and answers

**What is I/O Coin?**

I/O Coin (IOC) is a proof-of-stake blockchain launched on 24 July 2014 with no premine or ICO; its DIONS protocol adds on-chain names, encrypted messaging and data records.

**Is I/O Coin still running?**

Yes. The official explorer showed new blocks on 1 November 2026, and a new Widget Wallet version was released on 22 June 2026.

**How does I/O Coin consensus work?**

After a short X11 proof-of-work period capped at 12,815 mined blocks, the chain switched to proof of stake around block 24,400; stakers earn 1.5 IOC per block.

**Who develops I/O Coin?**

The project is stewarded by the nonprofit I/O Digital Research Foundation, and its code is public on GitHub under the MIT licence.

## Sources

- [I/O Coin - Home](https://iocoin.io/)
- [I/O Coin - llms.txt](https://iocoin.io/llms.txt)
- [I/O Coin - Explorer](https://chain.iocoin.io/)
- [I/O Digital Research Foundation - Home](https://iodigital.io/)
- [GitHub - IOCoin/DIONS](https://github.com/IOCoin/DIONS)
- [GitHub - IOCoin/DIONS releases](https://github.com/IOCoin/DIONS/releases)
- [I/O Coin Wiki](https://i-o-digital-foundation.gitbook.io/ioc)
- [I/O Coin blog - feed](https://wizrig.medium.com/feed)
- [I/O Coin blog - Open Community Letter (20 January 2025)](https://wizrig.medium.com/open-community-letter-proposed-directions-for-i-o-coin-c9bd17f9f575)
- [I/O Coin blog - Happy 9th birthday (24 July 2023)](https://wizrig.medium.com/happy-9th-birthday-i-o-coin-66814ec0f1b2)

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Page updated: 2026-11-01

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Source: https://revain.org/projects/iocoin/