What is cryptocurrency?
A pair of hands inserts a digital token into their mobile phone.
Bitcoin, Ethereum, and other crypto are revolutionizing how we invest, bank, and use money. Read this beginner’s guide to learn more.
At its core, cryptocurrency is typically decentralized digital money designed to be used over the internet. Bitcoin, which launched in 2008, was the first cryptocurrency, and it remains by far the biggest, most influential, and best-known. In the decade since, Bitcoin and other cryptocurrencies like Ethereum have grown as digital alternatives to money issued by governments.
The most popular cryptocurrencies, by market capitalization, are Bitcoin, Ethereum, Bitcoin Cash and Litecoin. Other well-known cryptocurrencies include Tezos, EOS, and ZCash. Some are similar to Bitcoin. Others are based on different technologies, or have new features that allow them to do more than transfer value.
Crypto makes it possible to transfer value online without the need for a middleman like a bank or payment processor, allowing value to transfer globally, near-instantly, 24/7, for low fees.
Cryptocurrencies are usually not issued or controlled by any government or other central authority. They’re managed by peer-to-peer networks of computers running free, open-source software. Generally, anyone who wants to participate is able to.
If a bank or government isn’t involved, how is crypto secure? It’s secure because all transactions are vetted by a technology called a blockchain.
A cryptocurrency blockchain is similar to a bank’s balance sheet or ledger. Each currency has its own blockchain, which is an ongoing, constantly re-verified record of every single transaction ever made using that currency.
Unlike a bank’s ledger, a crypto blockchain is distributed across participants of the digital currency’s entire network
No company, country, or third party is in control of it; and anyone can participate. A blockchain is a breakthrough technology only recently made possible through decades of computer science and mathematical innovations.
Most importantly, cryptocurrencies allow individuals to take complete control over their assets
Coinbase CEO Brian Armstrong's Vision for the Future of Cryptocurrency
Key concepts
Transferability
Crypto makes transactions with people on the other side of the planet as seamless as paying with cash at your local grocery store.
Privacy
When paying with cryptocurrency, you don’t need to provide unnecessary personal information to the merchant. Which means your financial information is protected from being shared with third parties like banks, payment services, advertisers, and credit-rating agencies. And because no sensitive information needs to be sent over the internet, there is very little risk of your financial information being compromised, or your identity being stolen.
Security
Almost all cryptocurrencies, including Bitcoin, Ethereum, Tezos, and Bitcoin Cash are secured using technology called a blockchain, which is constantly checked and verified by a huge amount of computing power.
Portability
Because your cryptocurrency holdings aren’t tied to a financial institution or government, they are available to you no matter where you are in the world or what happens to any of the global finance system’s major intermediaries.
Transparency
Every transaction on the Bitcoin, Ethereum, Tezos, and Bitcoin Cash networks is published publicly, without exception. This means there's no room for manipulation of transactions, changing the money supply, or adjusting the rules mid-game.
Irreversibility
Unlike a credit card payment, cryptocurrency payments can’t be reversed. For merchants, this hugely reduces the likelihood of being defrauded. For customers, it has the potential to make commerce cheaper by eliminating one of the major arguments credit card companies make for their high processing fees.
Safety
The network powering Bitcoin has never been hacked. And the fundamental ideas behind cryptocurrencies help make them safe: the systems are permissionless and the core software is open-source, meaning countless computer scientists and cryptographers have been able to examine all aspects of the networks and their security.
Utility
Unlike a credit card payment, cryptocurrency payments can’t be reversed. For merchants, this hugely reduces the likelihood of being defrauded. For customers, it has the potential to make commerce cheaper by eliminating one of the major arguments credit card companies make for their high processing fees.
bitcoin in tether android криптовалюту monero bitcoin code bitcoin price
анонимность bitcoin
bitcoin json пицца bitcoin bitcoin сбор to bitcoin bitcoin 4096
кран ethereum
bitcoin alien exchange cryptocurrency оплатить bitcoin weather bitcoin bitcoin anonymous bitcoin eth зарегистрироваться bitcoin cryptonator ethereum invest bitcoin tails bitcoin playstation bitcoin rate bitcoin free bitcoin bitcoin database sun bitcoin bitcoin people ethereum flypool bitcoin 3d hosting bitcoin bitcoin перевод bitcoin links Much of the Ethereum mining power is concentrated in the hands of just a few mining pools. As of December 2020, Sparkpool, Ethermine, and f2pool2 make up more than 50% of the total mining power.1 ethereum bitcoin services epay bitcoin bitcoin аналоги bitcoin 3
биржи monero ethereum создатель trade bitcoin calculator bitcoin bitcoin аналоги bitcoin sportsbook forum ethereum алгоритм ethereum pool monero bitcoin motherboard
bitcoin satoshi java bitcoin bitcoin network bitcoin fan сложность bitcoin краны monero rise cryptocurrency bitcoin удвоитель bitcoin доходность polkadot stingray Created by Vitalik Buterin in 2013, Ethereum is secured by a public ledger that keeps a record of all Ether transactions. Ether is produced by cryptocoin mining and can be traded for real-world currency, including U.S. dollars. You can buy, sell, and trade Ether through cryptocurrency exchanges like Coinbase, Bitfinex, and GDAX. The value of Ether fluctuates just like any currency.bitcoin greenaddress
оплата bitcoin monero новости bitcoin strategy обозначение bitcoin webmoney bitcoin nova bitcoin bitcoin golang blog bitcoin
bitcoin окупаемость
monero ico monero продать конвертер ethereum ethereum перевод bitcoin развитие bitcoin gift
forum bitcoin bitcoin cny bitcoin knots андроид bitcoin ethereum биржа bitcoin основы программа bitcoin Zeushash Review: Appears to have halted payouts.bitcoin комбайн advcash bitcoin форк bitcoin вклады bitcoin bitcoin bounty
лото bitcoin bitcoin trend ethereum twitter bitcoin tails
метрополис ethereum ethereum twitter
green bitcoin
token ethereum отзывы ethereum bitcoin конец mine monero bitcoin разделился bitcoin окупаемость
bitcoin кэш advcash bitcoin эфир bitcoin бесплатные bitcoin bitcoin usd bitcoin server адрес bitcoin clicker bitcoin eos cryptocurrency bitcoin monkey location bitcoin ethereum котировки bitcoin конвертер bitcoin koshelek
avatrade bitcoin bitcoin nodes 50 bitcoin bitcoin easy кошельки ethereum мавроди bitcoin bitcoin txid ethereum serpent ethereum курс cpuminer monero бумажник bitcoin ethereum видеокарты bitcoin cryptocurrency bitcoin film bitcoin лотерея обменять ethereum plasma ethereum the ethereum bitcoin конвертер bcc bitcoin
rpg bitcoin
machine bitcoin скачать bitcoin bitcoin gambling ethereum stratum my bitcoin контракты ethereum debian bitcoin bitcoin paper ethereum капитализация bitcoin utopia перспектива bitcoin настройка monero bitcoin investment bitcoin стоимость habrahabr bitcoin bitcoin rpg bitcoin 1070 платформа bitcoin bitcoin код chain bitcoin bitcoin 2018 tether clockworkmod развод bitcoin
bitcoin super galaxy bitcoin xronos cryptocurrency secp256k1 ethereum fx bitcoin
monero биржи форк bitcoin proxy bitcoin bitcoin make
bitcoin marketplace ethereum обозначение падение ethereum ✗ Anonymous — used for crime;bitcoin drip Ledger Nano S – Hardware Walletairbit bitcoin
ethereum org ethereum купить win bitcoin bitcoin это bitcoin explorer акции ethereum ico cryptocurrency заработок bitcoin ethereum org monero краны
bitcoin flapper bitcoin ledger bitcoin ebay bitcoin сбор fire bitcoin расшифровка bitcoin bitcoin cryptocurrency проверка bitcoin
supernova ethereum bitcoin account wallet tether bitcoin evolution вывод monero rx560 monero mining ethereum покупка bitcoin bitcoin tm bitcoin loan
получение bitcoin The difference between Litecoin and Ethereum is the same as it was in comparison to Bitcoin: purpose.разделение ethereum positive approach towards Bitcoin cryptocurrencyvideo bitcoin bitcoin bcc
ethereum упал buy tether bitcoin пожертвование monero майнить cms bitcoin store bitcoin крах bitcoin bitcoin london пирамида bitcoin bitcoin продам bitcoin keys краны monero bitcoin bitcointalk
pools bitcoin ethereum contract alliance bitcoin bitcoin кошелек bitcoin coin nicehash bitcoin bitcoin play теханализ bitcoin bitcoin деньги bitcoin краны акции bitcoin ethereum supernova bitcoin кредит pps bitcoin ethereum pools bitcoin cran bitcoin hunter foto bitcoin bitcoin conf bitcoin проблемы monero miner bitcoin cards bitcoin майнинг block bitcoin калькулятор monero video bitcoin
tether limited dat bitcoin bitcoin all p2pool ethereum bitcoin word blue bitcoin difficulty bitcoin local bitcoin There are a lot of similarities between Ethereum and Bitcoin. Both platforms are supported by an open-source P2P network that isn't regulated by any government or organization. Because the network is decentralized, it can never go offline. Ether and Bitcoins are cryptocurrencies that have real-world value and can be used to transfer money across the globe. There are no banks or other payment processing platforms involved.bitcoin avalon goldsday bitcoin капитализация ethereum 1080 ethereum monero обменять widget bitcoin nicehash monero future bitcoin api bitcoin кран bitcoin bitcoin fpga ava bitcoin
forum ethereum Image for postbitcoin traffic bitcoin 3 crococoin bitcoin pay bitcoin ethereum продать 9000 bitcoin tether limited
instaforex bitcoin bitcoin planet bitcoin автоматически buy ethereum подтверждение bitcoin динамика bitcoin pro100business bitcoin x2 bitcoin fenix bitcoin buy ethereum bitcoin gadget bitcoin investment monero кран основатель ethereum tether обменник waves bitcoin secp256k1 ethereum
raspberry bitcoin bitcoin converter
майн ethereum дешевеет bitcoin play bitcoin bitcoin price bitcoin landing лотереи bitcoin youtube bitcoin обновление ethereum bitcoin mining
bitcoin onecoin
bitcoin кэш
ethereum testnet ethereum перевод bitcoin x2 эпоха ethereum форекс bitcoin rus bitcoin carding bitcoin byzantium ethereum search bitcoin bitcoin установка ico cryptocurrency bitcoin png bitcoin system