What is Cryptocurrency?

A cryptocurrency is a decentralized digital currency, which uses cryptographic algorithms and a protocol called blockchain to ensure the reliability and traceability of transactions. Cryptocurrencies are entirely virtual, they can be stored in a digital wallet protected by a secret code belonging to its owner. Exchange platforms (Binance, Coinbase, Bitstamp, etc.) are used to buy and resell cryptocurrency online. If you want to know more and understand the procedure for buying cryptocurrencies, you can go to the Cryptoast website.

The first cryptocurrency to emerge, and arguably the most famous of them, is Bitcoin. Created in 2009 by an enigmatic programmer using the pseudonym Satoshi Nakamoto, it propelled the principle of blockchain and led to the creation of many other encrypted digital currencies, called "altcoins" by cryptotraders.

A value driven by rarity, as for precious metals

Generally, cryptocurrencies are designed to create a known and limited amount of tokens. In the case of Bitcoin, it is expected to generate 21 million tokens by 2140. New tokens are automatically assigned to miners: these are the nodes of the blockchain that confirm transaction blocks by solving cryptography algorithms. In the early years, the number of bitcoins created was large: 50 per block. This volume halves every 4 years, during an event called the " Halving ". This process makes it possible to gradually increase the scarcity of cryptocurrency, making it increasingly difficult to obtain it through mining. It aims to imitate natural resources like precious metals and protect the virtual currency from hyperinflation.

Legislation on cryptocurrencies varies greatly depending on the country. Central banks do not recognize them in the same way as national currencies and their legal status does not yet exist.