A detailed technical document published by a cryptocurrency project or blockchain protocol that outlines its technology, architecture, use case, tokenomics, governance model, and development roadmap. Whitepapers serve as the foundational reference for evaluating a project's legitimacy, technical merit, and investment potential. Bitcoin's 2008 whitepaper by Satoshi Nakamoto is the most famous example and established the template that most subsequent crypto projects have followed.
Example
“Before investing, the analyst thoroughly reviewed the protocol's 45-page whitepaper, paying particular attention to the consensus mechanism's security guarantees and the token distribution schedule.”