When most people think of cryptocurrencies, they probably think of cryptic currencies. Few people seem to know what it is and for some reason everyone seems to be talking about it. This report will hopefully demystify all aspects of cryptocurrency so that by the time you finish reading you will have a better idea of what it is and what it is.
You may or may not find that cryptocurrency is for you, but at least you’ll be able to speak with certainty and knowledge that others may not have.
There are many people who have already reached millionaire status by trading in cryptocurrencies. Obviously there is a lot of money in this brand new industry.
Cryptocurrencies are electronic currencies, short and simple. However, what is not so short and simple is exactly how it has value.
Cryptocurrency is a digitized, virtual, decentralized currency produced through the application of cryptography, which, according to the Merriam Webster dictionary, is “the computerized encoding and decoding of information”. Cryptography is the foundation that makes debit cards, computer banking and ecommerce systems possible.
Cryptocurrencies are not backed by banks; It is not supported by a government, but by a very complex system of algorithms. Cryptocurrencies are electricity encoded in complex strings of algorithms. What gives financial value is their complexity and their security from hackers. The way cryptocurrencies are created is very difficult to reproduce.
Cryptocurrency is directly known as fiat money. Fiat money is a currency that derives its value from government regulation or law. The dollar, yen and euro are all examples. Any currency defined as legal tender is fiat money.
Another part of what makes crypto currency valuable, unlike fiat money, is that, like commodities like silver and gold, it has a limited supply. Only 21,000,000 of these highly complex algorithms were created. None more less. It can’t be changed by printing more of it, like the government printing more money to pump the system without backing. Or a bank changes to a digital ledger, something the Federal Reserve will direct banks to adjust for inflation.
Cryptocurrency is a means of buying, selling and investing that completely avoids both government oversight and the banking system by tracking the movement of your money. In an unstable world economy, this system can become a stabilizing force.
Cryptocurrency also gives you a lot of anonymity. Unfortunately this can be misused by a criminal element using crypto currency for their own purposes just as regular money can be misused. However, it can also prevent the government from tracking your every purchase and invading your personal privacy.
Cryptocurrencies come in several forms. Bitcoin was the first and the standard from which all other cryptocurrencies pattern themselves. All are produced by precise alpha-numeric calculations from a complex coding tool. Some other cryptocurrencies are Litecoin, Namecoin, Peercoin, Dogecoin, and Worldcoin, to name a few. These are commonly called altcoins. The price of each is controlled by the supply of the particular cryptocurrency and the demand for that currency in the market.
The way cryptocurrencies have come into existence is quite impressive. Unlike gold, which has to be mined from the ground, cryptocurrency is an entry in a virtual ledger that is stored on computers around the world. These entries have to be ‘mined’ using mathematical algorithms. Individual users or, possibly, a group of users perform computational analysis to find specific series of data, called blocks. ‘Manira’ finds information that forms the correct pattern of cryptographic algorithms. At that time, it was applied to the series and they found a block. After matching the block equivalent data series algorithm, the data block is not encrypted. A miner is rewarded with a certain amount of cryptocurrency. As cryptocurrency becomes scarcer over time, reward amounts decrease. Adding to this, the complexity of the algorithm in searching for new blocks is also increased. Computationally, finding a matching series becomes difficult. Both of these situations combine to slow down the creation of cryptocurrencies. It simulates the difficulty and scarcity of mining a commodity like gold.
Now, anyone can be a miner. Bitcoin’s founders made the mining tool open source, so it’s free for anyone. However, the computers they use run 24 hours a day, seven days a week. Algorithms are very complex and the CPU is running at full tilt Many users have specialized computers designed specifically for cryptocurrency mining. Both users and specialized computers are called miners.
Miners (humans) also keep a ledger of transactions and act as auditors, to ensure that a coin is not counterfeited in any way. This protects the system from being hacked and running amok. They pay for this work by receiving new cryptocurrency every week that they maintain their operations. They keep their cryptocurrency in special files on their computers or other personal devices. These files are called wallets.
Let’s recap through some of the definitions we’ve learned:
• Cryptocurrency: electronic currency; Also called digital currency.
• Fiat money: any legal tender; Government backed, used in banking system.
• Bitcoin: The original and gold standard of cryptocurrencies.
• Altcoins: Other cryptocurrencies that are patterned from the same process as Bitcoin, but with slight differences in their coding.
• Miner: An individual or group of individuals who use their own resources (computers, electricity, space) to mine digital coins.
o Also a special computer specially designed to find new coins through computing series of algorithms.
• Wallet: A small file on your computer where you store your digital money.
Conceptualizing cryptocurrency systems in a nutshell:
• Electronic money.
• Coins are mined by individuals using their own resources to find them.
A stable, limited monetary system. For example, only 21,000,000 Bitcoins are ever produced.
• No government or bank is needed to implement it.
• The price is determined by the amount of coins available and used combined with the demand from the public to hold them.
• There are various forms of crypto currency, with Bitcoin being the first and foremost.
• Can bring great wealth, but, like any investment, there are risks.
Most people find the concept of cryptocurrency attractive. This is a new field that could be the next gold mine for many of them. If you find that cryptocurrency is something you want to learn more about then you’ve found the right report. However, I have barely touched the surface in this report. There is much more to cryptocurrency than what I have covered here.