A Complete Guide to Cryptocurrency-What Is Cryptocurrency?
Cryptocurrency, or crypto, is a digital currency designed to work as a medium of exchange for purchasing goods and services. What is cryptocurrency? Cryptocurrency is a digital currency that doesn't rely on central banks or trusted third parties to verify transactions and create new currency units. Instead, it uses cryptography to confirm transactions on a publicly distributed ledger called a blockchain. That definition might seem downright cryptic right now. But, by the end of this overview, you won't need a decryption key to understand crypto. There are thousands of different cryptocurrencies in circulation, each with varying values. The first cryptocurrency, Bitcoin (CRYPTO:BTC), was developed in 2009 by a programmer using the pseudonym Satoshi Nakamoto. In a 2008 white paper entitled, "A Peer-to-Peer Electronic Cash System," Nakamoto provides the first description of blockchain. Blockchain is the technology that enables cryptocurrency to work like government-issu...