> For the complete documentation index, see [llms.txt](https://docs.valuechain.xyz/llms.txt). Markdown versions of documentation pages are available by appending `.md` to page URLs; this page is available as [Markdown](https://docs.valuechain.xyz/part-i-introduction/2.-why-valuechain.md).

# 2. Why ValueChain

#### 2.1 What SoDEX needed

ValueChain began as the infrastructure answer to a product problem. SoDEX was designed as a fully on-chain order-book exchange for a global user base. It needed all of the following at once:

* throughput comparable to a major stock exchange for order-book transactions;
* a settlement layer that can handle payment-network levels of concurrent user activity;
* native support for on-chain order books and modular execution environments;
* composability with EVM smart contracts and the wider DeFi ecosystem;
* decentralization, transparency and open access.

No existing chain delivered all five. General-purpose chains offered composability but not order-book throughput. Single-application chains offered throughput but not a general platform.

#### 2.2 Two paths to performance

The industry has pursued high performance along two paths.**Path 1: enhance the virtual machine.** Many projects try to push the EVM, or a new VM, to higher throughput through parallel execution, new state databases and faster clients. This path is crowded and capital-intensive. It also works against a structural limit: the EVM was designed with reliability and censorship resistance as its first priorities, not raw execution speed. Parallel EVM execution has run into both theoretical and practical bottlenecks.**Path 2: redesign the application.** Instead of making the VM faster, this path makes the application itself deterministic and runs it natively at the chain level.ValueChain takes Path 2 and generalizes it. It aims to be the first general-purpose public infrastructure for this class of application, much as CUDA standardized GPU computing for developers.

#### 2.3 Our vision

The next era of finance will be built on open protocols rather than on centralized institutions. That infrastructure should be:

* **demand-driven:** built for real users with real needs;
* **globally accessible:** open to anyone, anywhere;
* **secure and transparent:** auditable, verifiable and self-custodial;
* **structurally open:** anyone can build on it without asking permission.

ValueChain is built to make that possible: a financial system where access, performance and openness no longer have to be traded against each other. SoDEX is its first application. The broader aim is to be the on-chain gateway for global assets of lasting value.