Coming up for air for a moment, we can see that transactions are usually initiated by one participant in a business network. This participant is usually the consumer of a service available from a particular service provider. For example, Daisy wishes to consume the services provided by Winchester bicycles, when it comes to buying a bicycle.

Most transactions initiated by participants are concerned with the change in state of an asset, but in some cases transactions can involve the change in state of a participant. For example, if I change my name by deed poll, then in some sense the asset being transformed is me—the participant. This reinforces the central nature of transactions—that they capture change no matter what the object.