We were joined by Founder Adam Perlow and Developer Asher Manning of Zen, a public blockchain project focused on building a decentralized financial system. The core premise of Zen is that none of the public blockchain networks are focused on financial asset. Zen is aiming to fill that gap through a Bitcoin-like UTXO architecture that supports multiple asset and smart contracts to enforce complex ownership rules. We talked through their original design choices, their use of formal verification, connection to Bitcoin and vision for a fully decentralized financial system. Topics discussed in this episode:Why existing public blockchains are ill-suited for financial instrumentsWhy Zen chose to use a Bitcoin-like UTXO architectureHow Zen uses formal verification to allow smart contracts without a virtual machine or needing gasHow the Active Contract Set reduces the burden on the minersWalking through creating, trading and settling a call option on ZenHow Zen allows payments to be settled in BitcoinGetting data from the outside world with oraclesZen's use of Proof-of-Work regulated by on-chain governance Links mentioned in this episode: Zen Protocol - A Financial EngineZen Protocol - WhitepaperZen Protocol - DeckGoogle Campus Presentation - YouTubeZen - Alpha VersionZen Protocol Founders Film - YouTubeOracles and Zen ?'" Zen ProtocolZen?'?s contract lifecycle ?'" Zen Protocol Sponsors: Shapeshift: Buy and sell alt coins instantly and securely without a centralized exchange - http://epicenter.tv/shapeshift Support the show, consider donating: BTC: 1CD83r9EzFinDNWwmRW4ssgCbhsM5bxXwg (https://epicenter.tv/tipbtc)ETH: 0x8cdb49ca5103Ce06717C4daBBFD4857183f50935 (https://epicenter.tv/tipeth) This episode is also available on :Epicenter.tvYouTubeSouncloud Watch or listen, Epicenter is available wherever you get your podcasts. Epicenter is hosted by Brian Fabian Crain, S?ƒbastien Couture & Meher Roy.