With an increasing amount of countries progressing towards a paperless and coinless society, cryptocurrencies such as Bitcoin, Etherium, and Litecoin are slowly becoming increasingly influential.
In this article, we are going to look deeper into everything you need to know about cryptocurrencies.
What is cryptocurrency?
Cryptocurrency, also referred to as E-currency, is an online and digital money exchange made and fully managed by commercial parties and private consumers. However, an interesting fact about most cryptocurrencies is that they are not legally controlled nor regulated. Cryptocurrency is therefore impartial to any form of bias such as manipulation or governmental interventions, and can not be influenced by a party with a hidden agenda.
A currency is in general considered as a middle ground or medium for monetary exchange and trade, the traditional financial policies do not apply to cryptocurrencies anymore. There are over a hundred different cryptocurrencies that exist within the digital money exchange market, however, Bitcoin still remains the leader and dominator within the digital currency. However, an increasing amount of cryptocurrencies emerge monthly, all competing for a piece of the pie that is the cryptocurrency industry. At the end of teh year 2017, the price of one single Bitcoin was roughly $20,000 and then took a drive to around $400,000.
How can I get cryptocurrencies?
If you are interested in purchasing cryptocurrencies, it’s relatively easy to get started with most cryptocurrencies. Sites such as CoinBase function as exchanges where private individuals, as well as commercial parties, can purchase a wide library of digital currencies.
There are also apps that function as digital wallets that allow you to efficiently keep cryptocurrencies yourself and send funds to others with ease. With a digital wallet, the private keys (that represent ownership) are stored directly on your device.
How do I spend cryptocurrencies?
If you have your own wallet under your own digital lock and key, you can ‘send’ people digital funds. To do this, most people tend to use online vaults, like those provided by Coinbase. The process is very similar to traditional online services: you simply enter the amount of money you want to send and the company you want to pay. Some vendors accept cryptocurrencies. Microsoft will let you add Bitcoin to your account online using your digital wallet.
If you want to read more about cryptocurrencies and the rise of digital currencies, be sure to read the article about the crypto battle featured on the Crowd1 blog
