What is Blake-256 (Decred)?

Blake-256 is a specific algorithmic hashing function (a mechanism to create and upload new blocks of data onto a blockchain in a secure manner) used by the Decred blockchain. Blake-256 makes use of the hash iterative framework (HAIFA) as well as the local "wide-pipe" structure introduced by the LAKE hash function and other complex cryptographic hashing mechanisms that help the Decred protocol operate.