What Cryptocurrencies To Invest In: What Is A Cryptocurrency?

A cryptocurrency is a digital asset, which applies cryptography, and created as a means of exchange. Cryptography makes all the transactions with these coins secure. Cryptocurrencies operate on a decentralized system, which means they don’t have one leading controlling user, institution, etc. The underlying technology of these currencies is blockchain. It makes the network decentralized and also serves as an open financial database. Satoshi Nakamoto (an anonymous developer or a group of them) was the first to apply the blockchain technology features and created a cryptocurrency. This coin was officially released on January 2009 and is now the most popular cryptocurrency in the world and is known as Bitcoin. Bitcoin uses the SHA-256 hash function and PoW consensus mechanism. So, if you are asking what cryptocurrencies to invest in, know that all the other cryptocurrencies that have been created after Bitcoin are known as Altcoins, which simply stands for “alternative coins.”  Paul Vigna mentioned it in The Wall Street Journal as “alternative versions of BTC.” For getting cryptocurrencies, you should have two things a crypto wallet and an account on a crypto exchange. You need cryptocurrency wallets to store the crypto coins that you got. These wallets can be hardware, software, and paper. Software wallets have their subcategories: desktop, mobile, and online. Cryptocurrency exchanges are special platforms, where you can swap your fiat currency to crypto coin or just exchange one crypto to another. Most of the cryptocurrencies are interchangeable, except some unique non-fungible tokens used in special purposes like in the CryptoKitties game. To use the features of crypto exchanges you have to create an account on the platform. However, to successfully create an account, you’ll need to pass KYC.  

There are some obvious reasons for cryptocurrencies’ popularity. What cryptocurrencies to invest in, you ask? One of the main reasons is the safety of cryptocurrencies. We have already mentioned that these currencies are using cryptography. Besides, it makes them extremely protected. The second reason is anonymity. The feature that you can anonymously transfer funds to another person makes cryptocurrencies frequently used. The third one is in its underlying technology. Blockchains make cryptocurrencies network decentralized, which is a great advantage for all the people who are tired of centralized institutions like banks. And the last point is, nowadays, world cryptocurrencies are becoming a lifebuoy for many people in countries with the not stable political or economic situation. Of course, there are many not stable cryptocurrencies, too, and the crypto project can turn out to be a scam. However, if you choose carefully you will surely get a profit.  

 

1. Bitcoin (BTC)

The leading cryptocurrency proved its stability by time. In the world of crypto where every day there is a new raising and dropping currency, Bitcoin is number one for already ten years. Bitcoin as a cryptocurrency is reliable. This coin is one of the most often chosen digital currencies to invest in nowadays, especially among beginners. Lately, in Argentina and Hong Kong, Bitcoin proved that it’s becoming the frequently chosen option in critical situations. When the peso became uncertain in Argentina, statistics indicated that many people got Bitcoins in that period.  

Registering And Mining: Options For Obtaining BTC

There are two options for obtaining BTC. The first one is the same as the other cryptocurrencies. You register in a crypto wallet, sign up for an account on the crypto exchange, and swap your fiat money to Bitcoin. The second one is mining. Mining is the process when the specially equipped machine solves some extremely hard mathematical puzzles for verifying the transaction and putting it into the block. The machines that are doing this job are rewarded with Bitcoins. During the first period, when there were not so many transactions executed with Bitcoin, simple PC could handle the mining job, but now that it has grown to a complex procedure, that only special computers can perform. Many suggest that because of its expensive equipment, mining is not profitable anymore, but it’s not true. In August 2019, the revenue from mining BTC reached its new high, which is $14 billion. In June 2019, BTC quickly gained its price and almost reached $13,000. After that, it started to lose its price. As of September 2019, the price of Bitcoin is $10,223. Experts suppose that it’ll grow in price again in winter. So, if you are thinking about investing in Bitcoin, it’s just the right time to get some and hold it until it grows in price.  

2. Ethereum (ETH)

Ethereum is another popular asset with a market capitalization of over $21 billion. Vitalik Buterin launched it in 2015. The main unique feature of Ethereum is that its platform enables to create dApps and Smart contracts. The token of this platform is known as Ether, and it is serving as a fuel for the Ethereum platform. Ethereum is popular among developers who are trying to make their apps decentralized. Ethereum is also a checked-by-time currency. If you decide to invest in Ether, prepare your cryptocurrency wallet. Go to any major exchange that is trading Ether, and just simply swap it with fiat currency. Note that this type of investments won’t bring you dividends. Just hold a token and wait for its price to grow. You can then exchange it and get more money.  

3. Litecoin (LTC)

Litecoin is positioning itself as a cryptocurrency for payments. As of September 2019, Litecoin’s market capitalization is over $4 billion. Charlie Lee, who was previously working as an engineer in Google, launched it in 2011. Litecoin is an open-source P2P payment network, which applies “script” PoW, that can be decoded with CPUs of consumer-grade. This coin was among the first currencies launched after Bitcoin. It developed the system of BTC by increasing the rate of block generation and transaction verification. Not only developers but also a huge number of merchants are now accepting LTC. Investing in Litecoin, just like investing in any other coin, is a passive investment. It means that there are no dividends or other benefits except one – you should hold it until it raises in price. The process is simple: open your exchange account, swap a coin or a fiat currency to LTC, and hold it in your crypto wallet until the right time comes.  

4. Ripple (XRP)

Launched in 2012, Ripple is a real-time global settlement network which provides users with low-cost and instant global payments. The consensus mechanism of Ripple is unique, and it doesn’t require a mining process. This is the thing that makes Ripple different. As there’s no mining process in Ripple’s system, it decreases the amount of computing power usage and minimizes network latency. An advantage of Ripple, which eases the life of investors, is that many banks have already adopted this coin. If you decide to invest in Ripple learn about OpenCoin and currency relationship. To get XRP, you will have to create a Ripple account on one of the supporting exchanges, get the second account on Coinbase or another alternative one (you need to perform these actions because you can’t directly send money to any Ripple exchange, so you have to own a second account on another one), buy ETH or BTC on your second exchange, transfer the purchased coins to first one, and buy Ripple from here. The process may seem complicated, but it’s not.  

5. Zcash (ZEC)

Launched in 2016, Zcash is one of the promising cryptocurrencies nowadays. To define itself, Zcash uses an analogy, “If bitcoin is HTTP for money, Zcash is HTTPS.” Zcash provides secure transactions with selective transparency. Just like HTTPS, Zcash intends to provide extra security or privacy where all transactions are recorded and published on a blockchain, but details such as the sender, receiver, and amount remain private. Also, this coin has a feature of “shielded” transactions, which uses advanced cryptographic technologies or zk-SNARK to encrypt the content. There are two ways of getting Zcash. The first one is more expensive. Just use the brokerage service of Coinbase and get the coin. The second is to get a Zcash wallet, locate your transparent address, find a Zcash supporting exchange, and get as much Zcash as you want to.  

6. Dash (Dash)

The launch of Dash in January 2014 was a success because the coin got a lot of followers in a short period. The former name of this coin was Darkcoin. It is the secret version of Bitcoin. The rebranding of this currency was in 2015. Dash stands for digital cash. The currency can be mined using a GPU or CPU. Getting Dash is easy. You choose a type of a digital wallet you wish and get the coin in the exchange you wish. And you still got two options: buy with fiat or exchange with a cryptocurrency. Then you simply transfer Dash to your wallet and hold it until it grows in rate.  

7. Cardano (ADA)

One of Ethereum co-founders launched this coin in September 2017. For ADA supporters, the currency offers all the advantages of Ethereum as well as some extra ones. Just like Ethereum, Cardano has a platform which supports smart contracts and decentralized applications. This network aims to solve the main problems of all cryptocurrencies: scalability and interoperability. Cardano also plans to give a resolution to global payment issues, which are the increased transaction time and high cost. Getting Cardano is like getting Zcash. You will need to register a Cardano wallet, then locate your ADA address, find the exchange that supports this coin, and withdraw the coins you obtain to your wallet. The next step is obvious. Invest in any other cryptocurrency, have patience, and wait until the right time.  

8. Bitcoin Cash (BCH)

This coin has its unique place in the history of altcoins since it was the earliest and the most successful hard fork of the original BTC. This strong connection between two coins made Bitcoin owners BCH holders, too. Bitcoin cash is a peer-to-peer digital currency, which developed the system of original coin and made transactions faster, less costly, and raised the number of transactions executed in a second. These advantages were possible because of enlarged blocks. In getting BCH, you will need basic things like any other cryptocurrency: the wallet and the exchange. All types of wallets are supporting Bitcoin cash, so you can choose the one that you want. Other actions are obvious, simply get the coin from the exchange and transfer it to your wallet.  

9. Monero (XMR)

Monero was launched in April 2014. In a short period, the coin became very interesting for crypto community and enthusiasts. Unlike leading cryptocurrencies, Ethereum and Bitcoin, Monero is a protected, open-source currency, and it applies special cryptography for hiding the addresses and transacted amounts. The name of the coin is very symbolic as “monero” means “coin” in Esperanto. Various organizations all around the world accept payments in Monero currency. Two of these are the City Map, an organization that gives unusual and HQ map themed designer items for any space decoration and Computer Lab, a New York city-based analysis and software consultancy organization. To get Monero, you will have to get Bitcoin, swap it to XMR, and store it in your Monero wallet as long as the price grows.  

10. NEO (NEO)

The original name of this platform was AntShares. The renaming took place in 2017 and from that on the platform is known as Neo. This is one of the leading open-source platforms and cryptocurrencies in China. It is sometimes called a “Chinese Ethereum.” The main purpose of Neo is to create a scalable network for dApps. The ecosystem of Neo is specially designed so it can successfully operate with dApps and smart contracts. The platform aims to make conditions which would be close to the ideal of a smart economy. To get NEOs, you will have to obtain Bitcoin or Ethereum first. Then just simply swap one of these two currencies with Neo and transfer them to a NEO wallet. So if you are asking “what cryptocurrencies to invest in?”, no matter what cryptocurrency you decide to invest in, remember to do good research before putting your money in any project.

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