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Cryptocurrency, also known as digital currency, virtual money, or crypto assets, is a type of holding that has been digitally created and not issued by a government. It uses encryption to secure transactions and regulate the issuing of new coins.
What is Cryptocurrency?
Cryptocurrency is a digital payment system that is independent of banks and government control. /it does not use standard banking methods to verify transactions. It’s a 1 on 1 system that enables anyone, anywhere, to send and receive payments. Instead of being physical money carried around and exchanged in the real world, crypto payments exist purely as digital entries to an online database describing specific transactions. When you transfer cryptocurrency funds, the transactions are recorded in a public ledger. It is stored in digital wallets.
It received its name because it uses encryption to verify transactions. This means advanced coding is involved in storing and transmitting crypto data between wallets and to public ledgers. The aim of encryption is to provide security and safety. The first cryptocurrency, Bitcoin, was founded in 2009 and remains the best known till today. Investors’ interest in cryptocurrencies is to trade for profit. Price speculations, at times, drive the prices north.
Cryptocurrency examples
Founded in 2009, Bitcoin was the first cryptocurrency and is still the most accepted and commonly traded. The currency was developed by Satoshi Nakamoto. It is widely believed to be a pseudonym for an individual or group of people. The identity of these individuals remains unknown.
Tether is a cryptocurrency that is hosted on the Ethereum blockchain with tokens issued by Tether Limited, which in turn is controlled by the owners of Bitfinex. Tether is called a stablecoin because it was originally designed to always be worth US$1.00, maintaining $1.00 in reserves for each tether issued.
Litecoin is a peer-to-peer cryptocurrency and open-source software project released under the MIT/X11 license. Litecoin was an early bitcoin spinoff or altcoin, starting in October 2011. In technical details, Litecoin is nearly identical to Bitcoin.
Ethereum is a decentralized, open-source blockchain with smart contract functionality. Ether is the native cryptocurrency of the platform. Among cryptocurrencies, Ether is second only to Bitcoin in market capitalization. Ethereum was conceived in 2013 by programmer Vitalik Buterin.