In delegated proof of stake, holders do not produce blocks themselves. They vote with their stake for a small, fixed set of block producers — called witnesses, delegates or super representatives — who take turns signing blocks. The design arrived with BitShares in 2014 and spread through Steem, EOS and TRON.
A small elected set produces blocks quickly and predictably, which is where the speed comes from. The same smallness is the trade-off: the chain is as decentralised as the vote, and votes are weighted by stake, so the largest holders and the exchanges holding customer coins decide who produces blocks. TRON elects 27 Super Representatives; Steem and Hive run 21 witnesses a round.
| # | Asset | Consensus | Block time | Market cap |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 6 | TRONTRX | DPoS | 3s | $31.4B |
| 34 | XDC NetworkXDC | XDPoS (delegated PoS) | 2s | $655M |
| 57 | VaultaA | DPoS | 1s | $151M |
| 58 | NEONEO | dBFT (delegated BFT) | 15s | $148M |
| 79 | XPR NetworkXPR | DPoS (Antelope) | 0.5s | $55M |
| 102 | ARKARK | DPoS (51 delegates) | 8s | $34M |
| 109 | SteemSTEEM | DPoS (21 witnesses) | 3s | $27M |
| 111 | HiveHIVE | DPoS (witnesses) | 3s | $27M |
| 135 | QIE BlockchainQIE | dPoS + QBFT | 3s | $12M |
| 147 | AergoAERGO | DPoS + Raft (SBP-based) | 1s | $10M |
| 161 | UchainUCN | DPoS | 3s | $7M |
| 162 | WhiteCoinXWC | PoS 3.0 (DPoS-hybrid) | 60s | $6M |
| 175 | Klever CoinKLV | DPoS (bonded) | 4s | $5M |
| 179 | MEVerseMEV | DPoS | 3s | $5M |
| 191 | ABBC CoinABBC | DPoS (EOSIO-derived) | 3s | $3M |
| 197 | BitSharesBTS | DPoS (graphene) | 3s | $3M |
| 216 | VexaniumVEX | DPoS (EOSIO) | 3s | $2M |
| 231 | ADAMANT MessengerADM | DPoS (Lisk-derived) | 5s | $1M |
| 276 | FIO ProtocolFIO | DPoS | 0.5s | $298,829 |
| 278 | U2U NetworkU2U | Helios (DAG aBFT + DPoS) | — | $294,354 |
| 301 | TaraxaTARA | Block DAG + PBFT finality (DPoS, VRF) | — | $102,167 |
| 312 | OneLedgerOLT | Tendermint (DPoS) | — | $24,734 |
| 336 | ZetrixZETRIX | DPoS-elected validators + BFT (21 validators) | — | $0 |
| 337 | Smart Energy PaySEP | DPoS (geth + system contracts) | — | $0 |
| 355 | NebulasNAS | Proof of Devotion (PoD; DPoS until 2020) | — | $0 |
| 486 | SolarSXP | DPoS (53 block producers) | 8s | $0 |
# is the chain's place in the ranking of pure cryptocurrencies. Block time is the protocol's target; blank means no source publishes it.
26 in the CoinSpectrum ranking as of 28 October 2026: TRON (TRX), XDC Network (XDC), Vaulta (A), NEO (NEO), XPR Network (XPR), ARK (ARK), Steem (STEEM), Hive (HIVE), QIE Blockchain (QIE), Aergo (AERGO), Uchain (UCN), WhiteCoin (XWC) and 14 more. Tokens never count — only chains with their own blockchain and consensus.
In proof of stake, any holder who meets the protocol's rules can validate with their own stake. In delegated proof of stake, holders elect a fixed number of producers and only those produce blocks. The vote is weighted by stake, so the outcome follows where the coins are held.
The median target block time among the 20 chains here that publish one is 3s, from 0.5s to 60s.
Nominated proof of stakeCometBFT (Tendermint)Every Proof of Stake chain
Methodology — how each chain's consensus was decided. Wrapped, staked and pegged claims are listed separately and never counted.