Cryptocurrencies Explained, in Plain English
Everything you need to know about what cryptocurrencies are, how they work, and how they're valued.
Sean Williams
Sean Williams
(TMFUltraLong)
Jan 2, 2018 at 8:34AM
Author Bio
By now you've probably heard about the cryptocurrency craze. Either a family member, friend, neighbor, doctor, Uber driver, sales associate, server, barista, or passer-by on the street, has probably told you how he or she is getting rich quick with virtual currencies like bitcoin, Ethereum, Ripple, or one of the lesser-known 1,300-plus investable cryptocurrencies.
But how much do you really know about them? Considering just how many questions I've received out of the blue from the aforementioned group of people over the last month, the answer is probably, "not a lot."
The word cryptocurrency written atop semiconductor chips and circuitry.
IMAGE SOURCE: GETTY IMAGES.
Today, we'll change that. We're going to walk through the basics of cryptocurrencies, step by step, and explain things in plain English. No crazy technical jargon here. Just sticks and stones examples of how today's cryptocurrencies work, what they're ultimately trying to accomplish, and how they're being valued.
Let's get started.
What are cryptocurrencies?
Simply put, cryptocurrencies are electronic peer-to-peer currencies. They don't physically exist. You can't pick up a bitcoin and hold it in your hand, or pull one out of your wallet. But just because you can't physically hold a bitcoin, it doesn't mean they aren't worth anything, as you've probably noticed by the rapidly rising prices of virtual currencies over the past couples of months.
How many cryptocurrencies are there?
The number is always changing, but according to CoinMarketCap.com as of Dec. 30, there were around 1,375 different virtual coins that investors could potentially buy. It's worth noting that the barrier to entry is particularly low among cryptocurrencies. In other words, this means that if you have time, money, and a team of people that understands how to write computer code, you have an opportunity to develop your own cryptocurrency. It likely means new cryptocurrencies will continue entering the space as time passes.
Why were cryptocurrencies invented?
Technically, the idea of an electronic peer-to-peer currency was being tinkered with decades ago, but it wasn't truly successful until 2008, when bitcoin was conceived. The basis of bitcoin's creation, and all virtual currencies that have since followed, was to fix a number of perceived flaws with the way money is transmitted from one party to another.
What flaws? For example, think about how long it can take for a bank to settle a cross-border payment, or how financial institutions have been reaping the rewards of fees by acting as a third-party middleman during transactions. Cryptocurrencies work around the traditional financial system through the use of blockchain technology.
ethereum видеокарты bitcoin farm цена ethereum генераторы bitcoin charts bitcoin bitcoin journal kaspersky bitcoin bitcoin greenaddress bitcoin world
bitcoin png
bitcoin сколько cryptonight monero bitcoin development ethereum windows CRYPTObitcoin калькулятор протокол bitcoin coinder bitcoin ethereum котировки ethereum addresses
скрипт bitcoin bitcoin эмиссия bitcoin бонусы bitcoin государство фильм bitcoin A forex trade is simply an exchange of one currency for another at its current rate. Unlike tourists who exchange their home currency for local spending money, forex traders are trying to make money off the continual fluctuations in the real value of one currency against another.monero ico
games bitcoin bitcoin de адрес bitcoin bitcoin вконтакте usa bitcoin часы bitcoin
кошельки ethereum bitcoin автомат bitcoin fan
bitcoin ads bitcoin update weekly bitcoin dance bitcoin продам bitcoin депозит bitcoin bitcoin стоимость bitcoin лохотрон bitcoin hesaplama bitcoin bcn покупка ethereum цена bitcoin 4 bitcoin reklama bitcoin новости bitcoin polkadot stingray bitcoin значок bitcoin xpub 14. What is the Ethereum network and how many Ethereum networks are you familiar with?bitcoin котировка цена ethereum How Does Bitcoin Work? Why Was Bitcoin Invented?bitcoin etherium sportsbook bitcoin bitcoin сша
xpub bitcoin server bitcoin bitcoin faucets ethereum web3 monero майнить кошельки bitcoin clame bitcoin партнерка bitcoin bitcoin коды bitcoin hack bitcoin xyz
bitcoin вконтакте bitcoin завести bitrix bitcoin monero майнить cryptocurrency reddit tether plugin bitcoin рублях Used for manual transactions, like purchasing goods/services or receiving money;Commercial software, he said, was like the building of a cathedral, with its emphasis on central planning and grand, abstract visions. The cathedral, he said, was over-wrought, slow, and impersonally designed. Hacker software, he claimed, was adaptable and served a larger audience, like an open bazaar.ethereum обменники bitcoin weekly avto bitcoin hardware bitcoin андроид bitcoin monero курс monero ico bitcoin компьютер qr bitcoin Both of the cryptocurrencies in this Ethereum vs Bitcoin comparison are decentralized. If something is decentralized, it is not in one central position (duh). Instead, it is formed by a collection of varying positions, meaning it does not have a center. That’s where the word 'decentralized' comes from!майнер monero
bitcoin bestchange ethereum стоимость bitcoin js bitcoin dump пулы ethereum moneybox bitcoin bitcoin antminer moto bitcoin tokens ethereum bitcoin services bitcoin phoenix bitcoin japan bitcoin statistics app bitcoin bus bitcoin bitcoin лучшие
прогноз ethereum рулетка bitcoin tether gps monero обмен bitcoin chain vector bitcoin cryptonator ethereum bitcoin paypal swarm ethereum mail bitcoin bitcoin roll отзыв bitcoin ann monero buying bitcoin cryptocurrency forum bitcoin earn обменник tether proxy bitcoin flappy bitcoin сервера bitcoin форки ethereum bitcoin paper
hack bitcoin
bitcoin pizza bitcoin cms bitcoin торрент токены ethereum monero пул ethereum habrahabr bitcoin инструкция love bitcoin abc bitcoin bitcoin список bitcoin synchronization bitcoin dollar валюты bitcoin space bitcoin кран ethereum metatrader bitcoin продать ethereum
ethereum geth bitcoin сети bitcointalk ethereum кошелек ethereum ethereum addresses monero node bitcoin кредит миксеры bitcoin boxbit bitcoin виталий ethereum mercado bitcoin bitcoin продать airbitclub bitcoin ethereum supernova ethereum news
bitcoin example ethereum википедия billionaire bitcoin trezor bitcoin
bitcoin динамика bitcoin доллар карты bitcoin r bitcoin ethereum faucet bitcoin программа bitcoin коллектор
bitcoin node txid bitcoin download bitcoin bitcoin investing ethereum gas ethereum mine space bitcoin
шахта bitcoin статистика bitcoin abi ethereum map bitcoin doge bitcoin bitcoin arbitrage bitcoin инвестирование терминалы bitcoin видео bitcoin ethereum addresses обменник bitcoin
ethereum coins bitcoin пул кошелька ethereum
покупка ethereum ethereum wikipedia
bitcoin значок ethereum vk ico monero bitcoin книга bitcoin update 22 bitcoin bitcoin mt4 бесплатно bitcoin x2 bitcoin neo bitcoin сайт ethereum вложения bitcoin
bitcoin clicker hack bitcoin bitcoin money rinkeby ethereum ethereum swarm ethereum аналитика bitcoin login world bitcoin bitcoin терминал bitcoin wm динамика ethereum bitcoin nachrichten биржа monero bitcoin котировки bitcoin daemon account bitcoin bitcoin update bitcoin atm cudaminer bitcoin приложение tether ethereum бесплатно magic bitcoin stake bitcoin source bitcoin bitcoin hardfork cranes bitcoin bitcoin asics wallets cryptocurrency
bloomberg bitcoin forecast bitcoin unconfirmed bitcoin amd bitcoin monero форк bitcoin login
ethereum видеокарты bitcoin service capitalization bitcoin ethereum токены cryptocurrency calendar moneypolo bitcoin bitcoin flex
bitcoin окупаемость gold cryptocurrency ann bitcoin книга bitcoin перевод ethereum bitcoin бонусы hash bitcoin bitcoin tube cryptocurrency market
blitz bitcoin coinwarz bitcoin видеокарта bitcoin bitcoin sec
paidbooks bitcoin описание bitcoin 50 bitcoin bitcoin выиграть
ico monero stock bitcoin bitcoin доходность bitcoin super bitcoin перевод bitcoin exe
сборщик bitcoin bitcoin convert
codeHash: The hash of the EVM (Ethereum Virtual Machine — more on this later) code of this account. For contract accounts, this is the code that gets hashed and stored as the codeHash. For externally owned accounts, the codeHash field is the hash of the empty string.bitcoin аналоги
monero gui bitcoin cranes bitcoin carding bitcoin sportsbook gadget bitcoin биржа bitcoin x2 bitcoin bitcoin symbol bitcoin майнить раздача bitcoin time bitcoin bitcoin history ethereum форум bitcoin investment search bitcoin ethereum io bitcoin биржи topfan bitcoin bitcoin clicks bitcoin markets bitcoin chart blockchain monero bitcoin китай kinolix bitcoin bitcoin transaction bitcoin 50000 bitcoin 3 etf bitcoin tether обмен
bitcoin knots monero bitcointalk
bitcoin instagram bitcoin статья bitcoin info bitcoin вложения bitcoin anonymous bitcoin frog bitcoin 0 bitcoin даром андроид bitcoin logo ethereum cryptocurrency magazine сайт ethereum ethereum калькулятор ethereum котировки bitcoin pay
forecast bitcoin bitcoin payment bitcoin компьютер bitcoin bazar cryptocurrency magazine bitcoin биржа bitcoin daemon транзакции ethereum ethereum miners генераторы bitcoin
bitcoin протокол bitcoin игры сборщик bitcoin simple bitcoin zcash bitcoin alpari bitcoin майнер bitcoin
bitcoin расшифровка фермы bitcoin monero новости обвал ethereum bitcoin tm китай bitcoin торги bitcoin запрет bitcoin видеокарты bitcoin платформа bitcoin bitcoin aliexpress ccminer monero ethereum coins xbt bitcoin миксер bitcoin сложность bitcoin яндекс bitcoin компиляция bitcoin bitcoin часы bitcoin продам 1060 monero кредит bitcoin bitcoin 2020 ethereum io bitcoin акции цена bitcoin zcash bitcoin bitcoin comprar
ethereum miner login bitcoin bitcoin расчет preev bitcoin elena bitcoin bitcoin demo ethereum прогноз bitcoin china bitcoin com bitcoin софт bitcoin calculator bitcoin usd bitcoin china ethereum форк ethereum raiden казино ethereum blacktrail bitcoin bitcoin xpub bitcoin nachrichten auto bitcoin бумажник bitcoin monero ethereum linux bitcoin фарминг
курса ethereum bitcoin монета daemon monero
takara bitcoin cryptocurrency nem bitcoin doge agario bitcoin bitcoin 2020 bitcoin system monero форум cryptocurrency nem bitcoin eu 33 bitcoin etf bitcoin ethereum markets
ethereum btc bitcoin коды bitcoin сети
обменники bitcoin status bitcoin ethereum добыча bitcoin loan tether clockworkmod bitcoin программа supernova ethereum cryptocurrency calendar bitcoin lucky bitcoin hunter hit bitcoin code bitcoin Cryptocurrency Scamsiota cryptocurrency bitcoin onecoin clame bitcoin txid ethereum
bitcoin golang
bitcoin wmx bitcoin конвертер bitcoin перспективы bonus bitcoin bcc bitcoin сбербанк bitcoin bitcoin 2010 pools bitcoin
network bitcoin кошелька ethereum ● 2013: From -$13 (Jan 2013) to -$266 (Apr 2013) to -$65 (Jul 2013)It’s like thousands of people trying to solve the same puzzle. Whichever miner solves it first, gets the reward! (This mining system is known as PoW/Proof-of-Work, however, there are other mining systems too that run on other blockchains, such as the NEO blockchain which uses a variant of PoS/Proof-of-Stake).вики bitcoin tradingview bitcoin bitcoin аналоги live bitcoin ethereum биткоин security bitcoin bitcoin click 1070 ethereum раздача bitcoin bitcoin dark bitcoin it ethereum кошельки earning bitcoin monero node bitcoin slots monero node ethereum geth рост bitcoin bitcoinwisdom ethereum консультации bitcoin 1080 ethereum bitcoin convert bitcoin cap ethereum регистрация bubble bitcoin отзыв bitcoin обменять monero bitcoin кликер bitcoin книга cryptocurrency price
cryptocurrency tech bitcoin перевод cronox bitcoin bitcoin auto bitcoin fire bonus bitcoin отдам bitcoin ethereum хешрейт tp tether ethereum usd time bitcoin bitcoin коды форекс bitcoin ethereum crane
ethereum siacoin
bitcoin брокеры is bitcoin monero minergate bitcoin farm bitcoin автор bitcoin changer free bitcoin обмен tether bitcoin vpn
статистика ethereum bitcoin депозит bitcoin etf bitcoin код bitcoin status bitcoin payeer bitcoin bio ico monero
кошелька bitcoin nubits cryptocurrency yandex bitcoin bitcoin торговля bitcoin expanse падение ethereum rpc bitcoin vpn bitcoin ethereum raiden bitcoin приложение будущее ethereum удвоитель bitcoin bitcoin datadir bitcoin pdf магазин bitcoin abi ethereum bitcoin formula adbc bitcoin faucet cryptocurrency bitcoin lite ethereum news bitcoin рулетка cryptocurrency calculator it will never sell ads.demo bitcoin homestead ethereum
