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Smart contracts
Introducing smart contracts
![Smart contracts](https://nbs.sk/_img/Documents/ico/inovacny-hub/ico7-contract.png)
A smart contract is a self-enforcing agreement embedded in computer code. Only very recently have smart contracts generated great expectations, especially in conjunction with DLT, although other technologies could also make use of them.
![Smart contracts](https://nbs.sk/_img/Documents/ico/inovacny-hub/contract-main.jpg)
Smart contracts enabled by DLT refer to pieces of computer code stored in a DLT, which are executed automatically on multiple distributed nodes upon fulfilment of pre-defined conditions, to enforce the terms of an agreement between parties. Therefore, agreements are automatically enforceable. Smart contracts may store the status of a transaction, to avoid having to go through the list of records in the DLT, and their execution can be triggered by another contract, by an individual or by a group of individuals if multiple parties are involved in the approval process for the execution of the contract.
Smart contracts may be:
- Pieces of computer code designed to be executed when pre-defined conditions are met, without an underlying legal contract.
- Extensions to a legal contract written in computer code.
- Legal contracts or parts of legal contracts set down in writing, transposed into software code and executed by computers that participate in the DLT network. Not all parts of a contract are susceptible to be automated, and sometimes that automation might not even be desirable.