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A lot of discussions have been going on about cryptocurrency over the last couple of years, but still there are many people who are not adequately sure about what it entails. In the words of a layman, a cryptocurrency can be considered to be a virtual or digital currency that is secured with the help of cryptography. This factor makes such a currency almost impossible to double-spend or counterfeit. As pointed out by Bharat Bhise many of the cryptocurrency tend to be decentralized networks that are based on the blockchain technology. Mr. Bhise has been a part of the cryptocurrency scene since the early 2000’s and hence has a good understanding of the diverse aspects of this digital currency.
Cryptocurrency is a relatively new form of digital asset that is majorly based on a network which is distributed across an expansive number of computers. Such a decentralized set-up plays a crucial role in enabling these currencies to exist outside the control of any kind of central authorities or governments. Bharat Bhise points out that the system followed by cryptocurrencies make making secure payments online which are denominated in the terms of distinctive virtual ‘tokens’ possible. These tokens are subsequently represented by ledger entries that are internal to the system. The term “crypto” here refers to the diverse types of encryption algorithms and cryptographic techniques that are used for the purpose of effectively safeguarding these entries, including elliptical curve encryption, public-private key pairs, as well as hashing functions.
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While there are multiple types of cryptocurrencies available now, the very first blockchain-based cryptocurrency was Bitcoin. It still is the most valuable, as well as popular variant of cryptocurrency. Over the years, thousands of alternate versions of cryptocurrencies have been developed, each of them having distinctive functions and specifications. Some of these cryptocurrency were even clones or forks of Bitcoin, while many of the others were built right from scratch. The most well-known, competing cryptocurrencies that came up after the success of Bitcoin were known as “altcoins”, and some of them are:
- Litecoin
- Peercoin
- Namecoin
- Ethereum
- Cardano
- EOS
As mentioned by Bharat Bhise currently, the aggregate value of all the cryptocurrencies in existence is somewhere around $214 billion, with Bitcon representing more than 60 percentage of this valuation. While talking about cryptocurrencies, it is impossible to not discuss the blockchain technology, as it is a core element impacting the appeal and functionality of these virtual assets. The blockchain technology is majorly used for the purpose of keeping an online ledger of all the transactions that have ever been conducted through diverse types of cryptocurrencies. It offers a data structure for the ledger that is highly secure, and is both shared by and agreed upon by the entire network of individual node. Each and every new block generated by it is diligently verified by all the nodes, prior to being confirmed. This factor makes it almost impossible to forge transaction histories.
