By design, blockchain networks operate completely transparently—every single transaction gets permanently recorded and visible to everyone.

Sounds ideal on paper, right? But here's the catch: this openness has an unexpected side effect.

Assets start carrying a reputation tied to their transaction history. Some cryptocurrencies become labeled as "clean," while others get tagged as "tainted." The irony? They're literally identical tokens.

The difference isn't in the code or the coin itself. It's purely about where it's been and what addresses have touched it. Same asset, same blockchain properties, yet the market treats them as fundamentally different based on their past movements.

This creates an interesting paradox in crypto markets—perception becomes as important as the actual technology.