What is KSM?

KSM is the native token of the Kusama network. The Kusama network has a similar codebase to Polkadot which is one of the most successful interoperable blockchains (interoperable means users can see and access information on other blockchain systems). It is often referred to as Polkadots ‘wild cousin’ because the key difference between the two is that Kusama lets developers create whatever project they want to as a sort of experimental blockchain, while Polkadot maintains a stricter security and openness. This means that many projects on Polkadot first start on Kusama and move to Polkadot once the community is behind them. To create a project, developers must buy and lock up the KSM token for two years. The amount of tokens required is however much is needed to win the auction for the space available on the blockchain.