SpacePay

Finality

Quick Answer

Finality is the guarantee that a blockchain transaction cannot be reversed once confirmed. Faster finality means faster checkout and lower fraud risk for merchants.

Full Definition

Finality is the guarantee that a blockchain transaction cannot be reversed, altered, or cancelled once confirmed. Different blockchains offer different levels of finality — probabilistic finality (Bitcoin, where deeper confirmations reduce reversal risk) versus absolute finality (chains with BFT consensus where a transaction is final after one confirmation). For merchants, finality determines when a payment can be considered safely received. Faster finality means faster checkout and lower fraud risk.