Intermediary

An intermediary is an entity serving as a link that brokers some relationship between actors in a cryptoeconomic system. In general, intermediaries impose a trusted relationship such that betrayal or failure would result in damage to the actors.

One of the fundamental value-accruing benefits of cryptoeconomic systems is their ability to build systems without trusted intermediaries. These systems, which may be analogous to traditional systems, eliminate costs associated with risks such as fraud and incompetence stemming from such intermediaries. This elimination of costs can be described as 'disintermediation', which gives rise to systems referred to as having trustlessness.