BitShares provides a Decentralized Exchange – similar to NYSE but for cryptocurrencies and without the need to trust a Authoritative Entity to handle all the funds – that facilitates trading using an international network of computers, in which anyone can take part.
BitShares also provides a cryptocurrency token called "BTS", which can be transferred between accounts and is used to collect fees for network operations and as a collateral for loans. The platform was designed by Daniel Larimer, an American programmer and entrepreneur, and launched in July 2014. Since March 2016 the project has been a part of Microsoft Azure Blockchain as a Service package.
BitShares uses Proof-of-Stake Distributed Consensus Protocol
BITUSD is a BitShares that is nearly "pegged" to the value of the USD.