What Is Hedera (HBAR)? The Enterprise-Grade DLT Token Explained

LeeMaimai

/Oct 24, 2025

Key Takeaways

• Hedera uses hashgraph technology for fast, secure, and low-cost transactions.

• HBAR serves multiple purposes including transaction fees, staking, and resource access.

• The network is governed by a global council ensuring compliance and stability.

• Hedera is designed for sustainability, achieving a carbon-negative footprint.

• Key services like HTS and HCS enable efficient tokenization and audit trails for enterprises.

Hedera is a public distributed ledger that uses hashgraph—an alternative to conventional blockchain—to deliver fast finality, low fees, and enterprise-grade security. Its native asset, HBAR, powers transactions, smart contracts, and staking across the network. If you’re tracking real‑world asset tokenization, carbon markets, and enterprise adoption, Hedera’s design and governance set it apart as one of the most pragmatic DLTs in production today.

This article explains how Hedera works, what HBAR is used for, and what’s new in 2025 for builders and users.

Hedera in 60 Seconds

Consensus: Hashgraph, an asynchronous Byzantine Fault Tolerant (aBFT) algorithm with “gossip‑about‑gossip” and virtual voting for fast, deterministic finality. Technical readers can dive into the original paper published by Swirlds Labs for a deeper view of the model and proofs of security (see the hashgraph technical report at Swirlds Labs).
Governance: A global Governing Council of major organizations steward network strategy, treasury, and compliance, while the network itself is proof‑of‑stake weighted. Council membership and responsibilities are public and regularly updated on the official site (see Hedera Governing Council).
Services: Native tokenization via HTS, ordered messaging via HCS, and EVM‑compatible smart contracts. Fees are predictable and low, and token operations do not require custom smart contracts (see Hedera Token Service, Hedera Consensus Service, and Smart Contract Service).
Sustainability: Designed for energy efficiency with a small carbon footprint and an offset program making the network carbon‑negative (see Hedera sustainability overview).

References:

Hedera technology overview
Hedera Governing Council
Hedera Token Service
Hedera Consensus Service
Hedera Smart Contracts
Hedera sustainability

Hashgraph vs. Blockchain

Traditional blockchain relies on block production and chain reorganization under certain conditions. Hedera’s hashgraph replaces blocks with a directed acyclic graph of events. Nodes gossip transactions and references (gossip‑about‑gossip), enabling virtual voting without heavy messaging overhead. The result is rapid finality and fair transaction ordering that is mathematically robust under Byzantine conditions. Builders who need predictable latencies and compliance‑friendly audit trails often favor deterministic consensus with verifiable timestamps (see the hashgraph technical report at Swirlds Labs).

Governance, Decentralization, and Open Source

Hedera’s Governing Council includes universities and multinational enterprises across sectors that term‑limit their roles and operate mainnet nodes. The codebase for Hedera services and mirror nodes is open source, while the underlying hashgraph algorithm is licensed; the implementation is publicly available and developed in the open (see Hedera technology overview and Hedera blog).

Hedera is proof‑of‑stake and has progressively expanded node participation while retaining council‑operated mainnet nodes for stability and compliance. For builders in regulated industries, that balance of decentralization and accountability can be attractive (see Hedera Governing Council).

Core Services for Builders

Hedera Token Service (HTS): Create fungible tokens and NFTs at the protocol level with fine‑grained controls—freeze, wipe, KYC flags—without writing a smart contract. Fees are low and predictable (see Hedera Token Service).
Hedera Consensus Service (HCS): Immutable, time‑stamped messages and event ordering for audit trails, supply chain logs, and identity attestations. HCS is often used alongside off‑chain databases or data lakes (see Hedera Consensus Service).
Smart Contract Service: EVM‑compatible contracts with gas paid in HBAR. Developers can deploy Solidity code and use familiar tools (see Hedera Smart Contracts).
USDC on Hedera: For fiat‑on‑chain flows and settlement, Circle supports USDC natively on Hedera, which simplifies enterprise treasury and stablecoin use cases (see USDC on Hedera at Circle).

References:

Hedera Token Service
Hedera Consensus Service
Hedera Smart Contracts
Circle USDC on Hedera

What Is HBAR?

HBAR is Hedera’s utility token used to:

Pay transaction and smart contract fees
Stake for network security and earn rewards
Access and secure network resources

Hedera employs a fixed max supply (50 billion HBAR), with detailed treasury management and emissions schedules governed transparently. Staking mechanics and node participation are documented in the official developer resources (see Hedera staking docs).

Reference:

Hedera developer documentation on staking

Performance and Sustainability

Hedera targets high throughput (especially for token transfers), low predictable fees, and finality in seconds, making it suitable for consumer‑grade apps and enterprise data pipelines. Its energy efficiency and offset program contribute to a carbon‑negative footprint, which matters for ESG reporting and climate disclosures (see Hedera technology overview and Hedera sustainability overview).

References:

Hedera technology overview
Hedera sustainability

Enterprise Adoption and 2025 Updates

Two areas stand out:

Real‑World Assets and Compliance: Tokenization with HTS and EVM contracts allows issuers to enforce compliance controls while maintaining on‑chain auditability. The HBAR Foundation has funded multiple RWA, payments, and enterprise projects, with a focus on regulated markets and integrations (see HBAR Foundation).
Climate and ESG: Guardian—an open‑source toolset for digital measurement, reporting, and verification (dMRV)—runs on Hedera, enabling standardized issuance of carbon credits and detailed supply chain attestations (see Hedera Guardian docs).

On the standards front, Hedera’s HIP process continues to evolve developer ergonomics. For example, account aliases and EVM address mapping are documented under HIP‑412, making it easier to interoperate with Ethereum tooling (see Hedera Improvement Proposals).

Meanwhile, decentralized key recovery efforts—such as the DeRec standard proposed by Swirlds Labs—aim to improve wallet UX without sacrificing self‑custody, a topic increasingly relevant to enterprise onboarding and consumer safety in 2025 (see DeRec standard).

References:

HBAR Foundation
Hedera Guardian docs
Hedera Improvement Proposals
DeRec standard
Hedera blog

Security Model and Risk Considerations

Permissioned‑to‑More‑Open Node Set: Council‑operated nodes provide strong uptime guarantees but may be perceived as more centralized than fully permissionless networks. Assess your regulatory and operational requirements.
Smart Contract Risks: EVM contracts on Hedera are as secure as their code. Audits, formal verification, and strict change management are recommended for enterprise deployments.
Token Controls: HTS features (e.g., freeze/wipe) are powerful; understand how they interact with your compliance posture and user expectations.

Getting Started

Developers: Use Hedera’s SDKs and docs to deploy HTS tokens or EVM contracts. For stablecoin use, integrate USDC on Hedera to streamline fiat flows (see Hedera Smart Contracts and USDC on Hedera at Circle).
Enterprises: Evaluate HCS for audit trails and event ordering, Guardian for ESG reporting, and HTS for programmable compliance. Review governance and service‑level characteristics (see Hedera Consensus Service, Hedera Guardian docs, and Hedera Governing Council).
Users: If you acquire HBAR, learn how Hedera accounts, EVM addresses, and aliases work to avoid mis‑sending assets (see Hedera Improvement Proposals and Hedera developer documentation).

Custody Tips and OneKey

Regardless of chain, hardware‑based self‑custody reduces online attack surface. For multi‑chain portfolios, OneKey focuses on open‑source firmware, clear‑signing, and a modern UX that fits both crypto‑native users and teams building on EVM‑compatible networks. If your organization uses Hedera alongside other ecosystems, consolidating key management into an audited, offline device can improve operational security while maintaining flexibility.

As always, confirm the specific chain support you need, follow best practices for backups and passphrases, and consider decentralized recovery standards like DeRec as they mature (see DeRec standard).

Hedera’s blend of hashgraph consensus, enterprise governance, and native tokenization is carving out a practical middle ground for regulated markets and high‑throughput applications. Whether you’re building RWA, ESG tooling, payments, or consumer apps, HBAR, HTS, and EVM on Hedera give you a toolkit that’s both fast and compliance‑ready—without sacrificing the core benefits of public DLT.

Useful links: