Filecoin

FIL CMC #74 in the snapshot

A storage network and programmable blockchain that uses economic commitments and cryptographic proofs to coordinate providers, data storage, and on-chain services.

Profile checked 14 Nov 2026Asset ranks captured 14 Nov 2026Snapshot & methodology ↗

01 / THE PURPOSE

What is Filecoin for?

Filecoin lets clients arrange storage with providers and makes storage commitments verifiable. Its blockchain records the economic and proof-related state; it is not a system that puts every stored file directly inside every block.

02 / THE ARCHITECTURE

Three questions about the machinery.

How does it agree?

Consensus & security

Expected Consensus selects block producers using storage power backed by proofs. Providers prove replication and continued storage. Fast Finality in Filecoin, or F3, adds a finalization mechanism alongside the existing block-production process.

Where do instructions run?

Execution model

The Filecoin Virtual Machine runs programmable actors, with the FEVM providing Ethereum-compatible execution. Contracts can coordinate storage-related funding and other on-chain applications, while retrieving a file is a separate service workflow.

What is the token for?

FIL in the system

FIL pays network fees and participates in storage-provider collateral, rewards, and storage economics. An application may use additional payment assets without changing FIL’s role in the underlying network.

03 / THE DESIGN CHOICES

What comes with the design?

Each architecture makes choices about security, performance, coordination, and who can participate.

A valid storage proof is not the same as a guarantee of fast retrieval through a particular gateway.
Storage providers face hardware, collateral, uptime, and proof-generation obligations, which influence participation costs.
Clients still need an appropriate replication, access-control, and retrieval plan for the data they care about.

04 / IN PRACTICE

Follow one use.

An archive stores copies with multiple providers and monitors their commitments. A later download still needs a working retrieval path; the archive’s preservation policy must consider both proof-backed storage and practical access.

05 / CHECK THE EXPLANATION

Sources & snapshot.

Network descriptions use the references below. The CoinMarketCap snapshot determines which assets are in scope and their captured rank; it does not assess the quality of a network.

Filecoin blockchain, consensus, and storage proofs Filecoin Docs
Filecoin Virtual Machine Filecoin Docs
F3 is active on mainnet FilOz
Retrieval paths and services Filecoin Docs
CoinMarketCap top 100 snapshot Captured 14 Nov 2026 · See the complete scope audit
Filecoin (FIL) on CoinMarketCap Captured asset rank #74

Profile checked 14 Nov 2026. Network designs and ranked positions can change.