Taxonomy and Comparative Analysis of Blockchain Smart Contract Registry Designs

Smart contracts (SC) are deployed on blockchain platforms without sufficient descriptive metadata. This lack of metadata significantly limits their discoverability, making it challenging for consumers to identify and select suitable contracts. This paper presents a comparative analysis of existing smart contract registry design approaches. It first identifies the core design properties of smart contract registries, such as descriptive metadata, description format, registry type, structure, platform scope, and discovery mechanism, and uses these dimensions as the foundation for our analysis. Drawing from this analysis, we propose a two-part taxonomy that distinguishes between purpose-based and business-based designs. We then analyze representative smart contract registry designs and highlight current key challenges in the field. By mapping the strengths, limitations, and trade-offs of these designs, this paper provides a reference to guide developers and platform architects. It aims to support the design of more efficient, transparent, interoperable, and decentralized smart contract registries, ultimately improving contract discoverability and selection for consumers.