Blake2S Algorithm | cryptocurrencies, blockchains & live prices

BLAKE2s is a cryptographic hash function optimized for 8-to-32-bit platforms, designed as the smaller and lighter counterpart to BLAKE2b. While BLAKE2b operates on 64-bit words and is optimized for 64-bit processors, BLAKE2s uses 32-bit words and processes input in 64-byte blocks through 10 rounds of mixing operations. Like its sibling, BLAKE2s is derived from the BLAKE hash function (a SHA-3 competition finalist) and uses a modified ChaCha stream cipher core with a HAIFA iteration mode. The algorithm produces hash digests of up to 256 bits, making it well-suited for environments where a 256-bit security level is sufficient.

BLAKE2s inherits the excellent security properties of the BLAKE family while being specifically tuned for performance on smaller hardware. It runs efficiently on 32-bit microcontrollers, embedded systems, IoT devices, and other resource-constrained platforms where BLAKE2b would be unnecessarily heavy. Despite its lighter design, BLAKE2s still outperforms SHA-256 and MD5 in software on 32-bit architectures, making it one of the fastest secure hash functions available for these platforms. Like BLAKE2b, it supports keyed hashing, personalization strings, and salt parameters natively, offering versatility beyond simple digest computation. The algorithm has been extensively analyzed and has no known security vulnerabilities.

In the cryptocurrency space, BLAKE2s is used by several projects, with its most notable application being in the Nano (formerly RaiBlocks) ecosystem and as a component in certain multi-algorithm chains. It is also used by Verge for one of its five mining algorithms in its multi-algo setup, alongside Scrypt, X17, Lyra2REv2, and Blake2b. The algorithm has found broader adoption outside of cryptocurrencies in embedded systems, mobile applications, and IoT security, where its compact size and speed on 32-bit hardware make it an ideal choice. BLAKE2s is available in numerous cryptographic libraries including libsodium, OpenSSL, and the Linux kernel, ensuring its accessibility across the software ecosystem.