SIST EN ISO 22739:2025

Blockchain and distributed ledger technologies - Vocabulary (ISO 22739:2024)

This document defines fundamental terminology for blockchain and distributed ledger technologies.

Blockchain und Technologien für verteilte elektronische Journale - Begriffe (ISO 22739:2024)

Chaîne de blocs et technologies de registres distribués - Vocabulaire (ISO 22739:2024)

Le présent document définit la terminologie fondamentale relative aux technologies de chaîne de blocs et de registre distribué.

Tehnologije veriženja blokov in porazdeljene glavne knjige - Slovar (ISO 22739:2024)

Ta dokument določa temeljno terminologijo za tehnologije veriženja blokov in porazdeljene glavne knjige.

General Information

• Status: Published
• Public Enquiry End Date: 31-Mar-2025
• Publication Date: 25-May-2025
• ICS: 01.040.35 - Information technology (Vocabularies)
• ICS: 35.030 - IT Security
• ICS: 35.040.99 - Other standards related to information coding
• ICS: 35.240.40 - IT applications in banking
• ICS: 35.240.99 - IT applications in other fields
• Technical Committee: BLC - Blockchain
• Current Stage: 6060 - National Implementation/Publication (Adopted Project)
• Start Date: 21-May-2025
• Due Date: 26-Jul-2025
• Completion Date: 26-May-2025
• Ref Project: EN ISO 22739:2025 - Blockchain and distributed ledger technologies - Vocabulary (ISO 22739:2024)

Relations

• Revises: SIST EN ISO 22739:2023 - Blockchain and distributed ledger technologies - Vocabulary (ISO 22739:2020)
• Effective Date: 19-Jun-2024

Overview

SIST EN ISO 22739:2025 is the Slovenian adoption of the international standard ISO 22739:2024, which defines the fundamental vocabulary for blockchain and distributed ledger technologies (DLT). Developed by the International Organization for Standardization (ISO) and published by SIST, this standard aims to provide clear, consistent, and universally accepted terminology for the blockchain and DLT domains. By establishing standard definitions, it supports effective communication, interoperability, and application development across industries, ensuring all stakeholders-including solution developers, regulators, and end-users-operate with a shared understanding of essential concepts.

Key Topics

SIST EN ISO 22739:2025 covers a comprehensive set of terms relevant to blockchain and distributed ledger technology. Key terminology and concepts defined in this standard include:

• Blockchain & Distributed Ledger: Definitions of blockchain, distributed ledger, and DLT, emphasizing the principles of immutability, consensus, and data structure.
• Nodes and Networks: Terms such as DLT nodes, DLT network, peer-to-peer networks, and the roles of entities such as miners and validators.
• Tokens and Assets: Fundamental concepts related to digital assets, tokens, cryptoassets, cryptocurrencies, non-fungible tokens (NFTs), and utility tokens.
• Consensus and Validation: Consensus mechanisms, the process of confirming and validating transactions or blocks, and types of consensus used in DLT systems.
• Governance and Permission Models: Definitions for DLT governance, permissioned vs. permissionless systems, and public vs. private DLTs.
• Security and Identity: Includes terms like digital signature, cryptography, decentralized identifiers (DIDs), self-sovereign identity, and wallet management.
• Data Structures: Discussions on block headers, ledger records, Merkle trees, hash functions, and related cryptographic principles.
• DLT Application Interfaces: Key concepts like smart contracts, DLT oracles, sidechains, subchains, pruning, and interoperability.

Applications

Standardized blockchain and DLT vocabulary, as established by ISO 22739:2024, plays a crucial role in multiple practical contexts:

• Technology Development: Provides software engineers and system architects with a precise language for requirements, design, and implementation of blockchain solutions.
• Regulatory Compliance: Assists regulators and auditors in interpreting, assessing, and enforcing policies or laws related to blockchain applications, ensuring clarity in legal and compliance contexts.
• Financial Services: Supports the integration and innovation of blockchain in fintech, including banking, payments, digital currencies, and asset tokenization.
• Interoperability: Facilitates the development of interoperable systems and solutions across different blockchain platforms or DLT networks, crucial for scalability and cross-industry adoption.
• Education and Research: Serves as an authoritative reference for academics, trainers, and researchers, promoting consistency in communication and publications.
• Standards Development: Provides a foundation for other international standards concerning blockchain applications, security, privacy, and governance.

Related Standards

SIST EN ISO 22739:2025 references and complements several other international standards in the fields of information technology, IT security, data management, and cloud computing, such as:

• ISO/IEC 2382 - Information technology vocabulary
• ISO/IEC 27037 - Security techniques for digital evidence
• ISO 7498-2 - Open Systems Interconnection security architecture
• ISO/IEC 17788 - Cloud computing overview and vocabulary
• ISO/IEC 10118-1 - Hash functions
• ISO 14641 - Electronic document management

These and other standards support the broader context of blockchain deployment, including data security, identity management, and digital signatures.

By unifying vocabulary across international borders and technical fields, SIST EN ISO 22739:2025 helps drive the effective deployment, scaling, and governance of blockchain and distributed ledger solutions worldwide.

Standards Content (Sample)

SLOVENSKI STANDARD
01-julij-2025
Tehnologije veriženja blokov in porazdeljene glavne knjige - Slovar (ISO
22739:2024)
Blockchain and distributed ledger technologies - Vocabulary (ISO 22739:2024)
Blockchain und Technologien für verteilte elektronische Journale - Begriffe (ISO
22739:2024)
Chaîne de blocs et technologies de registres distribués - Vocabulaire (ISO 22739:2024)
Ta slovenski standard je istoveten z: EN ISO 22739:2025
ICS:
01.040.35 Informacijska tehnologija. Information technology
(Slovarji) (Vocabularies)
35.030 Informacijska varnost IT Security
35.040.99 Drugi standardi v zvezi s Other standards related to
kodiranjem informacij information coding
35.240.40 Uporabniške rešitve IT v IT applications in banking
bančništvu
2003-01.Slovenski inštitut za standardizacijo. Razmnoževanje celote ali delov tega standarda ni dovoljeno.

EUROPEAN STANDARD EN ISO 22739

NORME EUROPÉENNE
EUROPÄISCHE NORM
May 2025
ICS 01.040.35; 35.030; 35.240.99; 35.240.40
Supersedes EN ISO 22739:2022
English version
Blockchain and distributed ledger technologies -
Vocabulary (ISO 22739:2024)
Chaîne de blocs et technologies de registres distribués - Blockchain und Technologien für verteilte
Vocabulaire (ISO 22739:2024) elektronische Journale - Begriffe (ISO 22739:2024)
This European Standard was approved by CEN on 11 May 2025.

CEN and CENELEC members are bound to comply with the CEN/CENELEC Internal Regulations which stipulate the conditions for
giving this European Standard the status of a national standard without any alteration. Up-to-date lists and bibliographical
references concerning such national standards may be obtained on application to the CEN-CENELEC Management Centre or to
any CEN and CENELEC member.
This European Standard exists in three official versions (English, French, German). A version in any other language made by
translation under the responsibility of a CEN and CENELEC member into its own language and notified to the CEN-CENELEC
Management Centre has the same status as the official versions.

CEN and CENELEC members are the national standards bodies and national electrotechnical committees of Austria, Belgium,
Bulgaria, Croatia, Cyprus, Czech Republic, Denmark, Estonia, Finland, France, Germany, Greece, Hungary, Iceland, Ireland, Italy,
Latvia, Lithuania, Luxembourg, Malta, Netherlands, Norway, Poland, Portugal, Republic of North Macedonia, Romania, Serbia,
Slovakia, Slovenia, Spain, Sweden, Switzerland, Türkiye and United Kingdom.

CEN-CENELEC Management Centre:
Rue de la Science 23, B-1040 Brussels
© 2025 CEN/CENELEC All rights of exploitation in any form and by any means
Ref. No. EN ISO 22739:2025 E
reserved worldwide for CEN national Members and for
CENELEC Members.
Contents Page
European foreword . 3

European foreword
The text of ISO 22739:2024 has been prepared by Technical Committee ISO/TC 307 "Blockchain and
distributed ledger technologies” of the International Organization for Standardization (ISO) and has
been taken over as EN ISO 22739:2025 by Technical Committee CEN-CENELEC/ JTC 19 “Blockchain and
Distributed Ledger Technologies” the secretariat of which is held by UNI.
This European Standard shall be given the status of a national standard, either by publication of an
identical text or by endorsement, at the latest by November 2025, and conflicting national standards
shall be withdrawn at the latest by November 2025.
Attention is drawn to the possibility that some of the elements of this document may be the subject of
patent rights. CEN-CENELEC shall not be held responsible for identifying any or all such patent rights.
This document supersedes EN ISO 22739:2022.
Any feedback and questions on this document should be directed to the users’ national standards body.
A complete listing of these bodies can be found on the CEN and CENELEC websites.
According to the CEN-CENELEC Internal Regulations, the national standards organizations of the
following countries are bound to implement this European Standard: Austria, Belgium, Bulgaria,
Croatia, Cyprus, Czech Republic, Denmark, Estonia, Finland, France, Germany, Greece, Hungary, Iceland,
Ireland, Italy, Latvia, Lithuania, Luxembourg, Malta, Netherlands, Norway, Poland, Portugal, Republic of
North Macedonia, Romania, Serbia, Slovakia, Slovenia, Spain, Sweden, Switzerland, Türkiye and the
United Kingdom.
Endorsement notice
The text of ISO 22739:2024 has been approved by CEN-CENELEC as EN ISO 22739:2025 without any
modification.
International
Standard
ISO 22739
Second edition
Blockchain and distributed ledger
2024-01
technologies — Vocabulary
Chaîne de blocs et technologies de registres distribués —
Vocabulaire
Reference number
ISO 22739:2024(en) © ISO 2024
ISO 22739:2024(en)
© ISO 2024
All rights reserved. Unless otherwise specified, or required in the context of its implementation, no part of this publication may
be reproduced or utilized otherwise in any form or by any means, electronic or mechanical, including photocopying, or posting on
the internet or an intranet, without prior written permission. Permission can be requested from either ISO at the address below
or ISO’s member body in the country of the requester.
ISO copyright office
CP 401 • Ch. de Blandonnet 8
CH-1214 Vernier, Geneva
Phone: [phone]
Email: [e-mail]
Website: www.iso.org
Published in Switzerland
ii
ISO 22739:2024(en)
Contents Page
Foreword .iv
Introduction .v
1 Scope . 1
2 Normative references . 1
3 Terms and definitions . 1
Bibliography .12
Index .13

iii
ISO 22739:2024(en)
Foreword
ISO (the International Organization for Standardization) is a worldwide federation of national standards
bodies (ISO member bodies). The work of preparing International Standards is normally carried out through
ISO technical committees. Each member body interested in a subject for which a technical committee
has been established has the right to be represented on that committee. International organizations,
governmental and non-governmental, in liaison with ISO, also take part in the work. ISO collaborates closely
with the International Electrotechnical Commission (IEC) on all matters of electrotechnical standardization.
The procedures used to develop this document and those intended for its further maintenance are described
in the ISO/IEC Directives, Part 1. In particular, the different approval criteria needed for the different types
of ISO document should be noted. This document was drafted in accordance with the editorial rules of the
ISO/IEC Directives, Part 2 (see www.iso.org/directives).
ISO draws attention to the possibility that the implementation of this document may involve the use of (a)
patent(s). ISO takes no position concerning the evidence, validity or applicability of any claimed patent
rights in respect thereof. As of the date of publication of this document, ISO had not received notice of (a)
patent(s) which may be required to implement this document. However, implementers are cautioned that
this may not represent the latest information, which may be obtained from the patent database available at
www.iso.org/patents. ISO shall not be held responsible for identifying any or all such patent rights.
Any trade name used in this document is information given for the convenience of users and does not
constitute an endorsement.
For an explanation of the voluntary nature of standards, the meaning of ISO specific terms and expressions
related to conformity assessment, as well as information about ISO's adherence to the World Trade
Organization (WTO) principles in the Technical Barriers to Trade (TBT), see www.iso.org/iso/foreword.html.
This document was prepared by Technical Committee ISO/TC 307, Blockchain and distributed ledger
technologies.
This second edition cancels and replaces the first edition (ISO 22739:2020), which has been technically
revised.
The main changes are as follows:
— inclusion of new terms and definitions.
Any feedback or questions on this document should be directed to the user’s national standards body. A
complete listing of these bodies can be found at www.iso.org/members.html.

iv
ISO 22739:2024(en)
Introduction
This document defines terms relating to blockchain and distributed ledger technologies (DLTs) to clarify the
meaning of terms and concepts used in other documents within the domain of ISO/TC 307.
Clear, consistent and coherent standards require clear, consistent and coherent terminology. This document
follows the rules and guidelines set by ISO/TC 37, Language and terminology, for terminology standards.
This document applies to all types of organizations (e.g. commercial enterprises, government agencies and
non-profits). The target audience includes but is not limited to academics, solution architects, customers,
users, tool developers, regulators, auditors and standards development organizations.

v
International Standard ISO 22739:2024(en)
Blockchain and distributed ledger technologies — Vocabulary
1 Scope
This document defines fundamental terminology for blockchain and distributed ledger technologies.
2 Normative references
There are no normative references in this document.
3 Terms and definitions
ISO and IEC maintain terminology databases for use in standardization at the following addresses:
— ISO Online browsing platform: available at https:// www. iso. org/o bp
— IEC Electropedia: available at https:// www.e lectropedia. org/
3.1
asset
anything that has value to a stakeholder
[SOURCE: ISO 19299:2020, 3.1, modified — The Note to entry has been removed.]
3.2
block
structured data comprising a block header (3.4) and block data (3.3)
3.3
block data
structured data comprising zero or more transaction records (3.95) or references to transaction records
3.4
block header
structured data that includes a hash link (3.47) to the previous block (3.2), if present
Note 1 to entry: A block header can also contain a timestamp (3.91), a nonce (3.62), and other distributed ledger
technology (DLT) platform (3.33) specific data, including a hash value (3.48) of corresponding transaction records
(3.95).
3.5
block reward
reward given to miners (3.59) or validators (3.99) after a block (3.2) is confirmed (3.9) in a blockchain system
(3.7)
Note 1 to entry: A reward can be in the form of a cryptoasset (3.14).
3.6
blockchain
distributed ledger (3.23) with confirmed blocks (3.10) organized in an append-only, sequential chain using
hash links (3.47)
ISO 22739:2024(en)
3.7
blockchain system
system that implements a blockchain (3.6)
Note 1 to entry: A blockchain system is a type of distributed ledger technology (DLT) system (3.35).
3.8
blockchain technology
technology that enables the operation and use of blockchains (3.6)
3.9
confirmed
accepted by consensus (3.12) to be recorded in a distributed ledger (3.23)
3.10
confirmed block
block (3.2) that has been confirmed (3.9)
3.11
confirmed transaction
transaction (3.93) that has been confirmed (3.9)
3.12
consensus
agreement among distributed ledger technology (DLT) nodes (3.31) that:
— a transaction (3.93) is validated (3.97);
— the distributed ledger (3.23) contains a consistent set and ordering of records of validated transactions
Note 1 to entry: Consensus does not necessarily mean that all DLT nodes agree.
Note 2 to entry: The details regarding consensus differ among DLT systems (3.35) and this can be a distinguishing
characteristic between one DLT system and another.
3.13
consensus mechanism
set of rules and procedures by which consensus (3.12) is reached
Note 1 to entry: These rules and procedures are interrelated.
3.14
cryptoasset
crypto-asset
digital asset (3.21) implemented using cryptographic techniques
Note 1 to entry: distributed ledger technology (DLT) systems (3.35) can be used to manage or transfer cryptoassets.
3.15
cryptocurrency
cryptoasset (3.14) designed to work as a medium of payment or value exchange
Note 1 to entry: Cryptocurrency involves the use of decentralized control and cryptography (3.16) to secure
transactions (3.93), control the creation of additional assets (3.1), and verify the transfer of assets in a distributed
ledger technology (DLT) system (3.35).
3.16
cryptography
discipline that embodies the principles, means and methods for the transformation of data in order to hide
their semantic content, prevent their unauthorized use, or prevent their undetected modifications
[SOURCE: ISO 7498-2:1989, 3.3.20, modified — The Note to entry has been removed.]

ISO 22739:2024(en)
3.17
decentralized application
Dapp
application that runs on a decentralized system (3.20)
3.18
decentralized identifier
DID
identifier (3.49) that is issued or managed in a decentralized system (3.20) and designed to be unique within
a context
Note 1 to entry: Decentralized identifiers are used in systems that do not rely on central registration authorities.
3.19
decentralized identity
identity (3.50) that is managed in a decentralized system (3.20)
3.20
decentralized system
distributed system (3.24) wherein control is distributed among the persons or organizations participating in
the operation of the system
Note 1 to entry: In a decentralized system, the distribution of control among persons or organizations participating in
the system is determined by the system’s design.
3.21
digital asset
asset (3.1) that exists only in digital form or that is the digital representation of another asset
3.22
digital signature
data which, when appended to data to be signed, enable the user of the data to authenticate their origin and
integrity
[SOURCE: ISO 14641:2018, 3.17, modified — “digital document” has been replaced with “data to be signed”.]
3.23
distributed ledger
ledger (3.54) that is shared across a set of distributed ledger technology (DLT) nodes (3.31) and synchronized
between the DLT nodes using a consensus mechanism (3.13)
Note 1 to entry: A distributed ledger is designed to be immutable (3.51), tamper-resistant, tamper-evident and append-
only, containing final and definitive ledger records (3.55) of confirmed (3.9) and validated (3.97) transactions (3.93).
3.24
distributed system
system in which components located on networked computers communicate and coordinate their actions by
interacting with each other
3.25
DLT
distributed ledger technology
technology that enables the operation and use of distributed ledgers (3.23)
3.26
DLT account
distributed ledger technology account
representation of an entity (3.38) participating in a transaction (3.93) in a DLT system (3.35)

ISO 22739:2024(en)
3.27
DLT address
distributed ledger technology address
data element designating the originating source or destination of a transaction (3.93)
3.28
DLT bridge
distributed ledger technology bridge
DLT oracle (3.32) that enables interoperability (3.52) between a DLT system (3.35) and other systems that
implement ledgers (3.54)
Note 1 to entry: The other systems can also be DLT systems.
3.29
DLT governance
distributed ledger technology governance
system for directing and controlling a DLT system (3.35) including the distribution of on-ledger (3.68) and
off-ledger (3.66) decision rights, incentives, responsibilities and accountabilities
3.30
DLT network
distributed ledger technology network
network of DLT nodes (3.31) which make up a DLT system (3.35)
3.31
DLT node
distributed ledger technology node
device or process that participates in a network and stores a complete or partial replica of the ledger records
(3.55)
3.32
DLT oracle
distributed ledger technology oracle
service that updates a distributed ledger (3.23) using data from outside of a DLT system (3.35)
Note 1 to entry: DLT oracles can be used by smart contracts (3.88) to access data from sources external to the DLT
system.
3.33
DLT platform
distributed ledger technology platform
set of processing, storage and communication entities (3.38) that together provide the capabilities of the DLT
system (3.35) on each DLT node (3.31)
3.34
DLT solution
distributed ledger technology solution
solution built using a DLT system (3.35) to accomplish some business objectives common to a group of DLT
users (3.36)
Note 1 to entry: A DLT solution consists of the DLT system with its DLT no
...