Cryptocurrency
Cryptocurrency has been trending worldwide. It can be hard to understand the articles without a base knowledge. We have compiled an article that highlights the most important key features of cryptocurrency.
What is cryptocurrency?
It is digital money where no physical coins or notes are involved. The digital currency can be exchanged online for goods and services. Cryptocurrencies aren’t tied to valuable assets. It can be considered that it is a risky investment as the market for cryptocurrency fluctuates erratically.
Unlike artwork or property, cryptocurrency is not known for being stable and keeping its value.
What can you buy with it ?
Most shops in the UK won’t accept bitcoin as legal tender. Gift cards on the other hand is another story. Most retailers accept gift cards and there is a way to convert your bitcoin into gift cards to use in your local shops. With Gift Off, you can chose from 470 top brands. This includes restaurants, gaming, entertainment and fashion. You can also buy flight deals with airBaltic. They are basic tickets, and airBaltic pick the best flight deals which are featured exclusively on their website.
LUSH cosmetics is one of the few UK retailers that will allow for consumers to buy products with cryptocurrency online. LUSH are fresh handmade cosmetics company that are popular for their 100% vegetarian products such as bath bombs, shower gels and packaging free hair products.
What types of cryptocurrency are there?
There are more than 4,000 cryptocurrencies worldwide, as of January 2021. Here are some of the most popular.
Bitcoin is the most commonly known cryptocurrency. Created in 2009, Bitcoin is one of the original. The Bitcoins are stored in a digital wallet app. This can be accessed via computer or smartphone.
Litecoin was launched in 2011 as an alternative to Bitcoin. There are few differences between Litecoin and Bitcoin, however there are larger limits to the amount of cryptocurrency you can purchase with Bitcoin. Litecoin is considered to have faster transaction times.
Other examples of cryptocurrencies are:
• Bitcoin cash
• Ethereum classic
• Zcash
What to be wary of
Make sure you do your research before putting your whole life savings into cryptocurrency. It is a volatile market, the largest spikes in Bitcoin recorded so far were in December 2013, January 2015 and August 2017.
If you do decide to get into it, do not lose your wallet. It is near impossible to get it back. If you do purchase cryptocurrency, ensure you back up your wallet and keep information safe and secure.
Be alert as cryptojacking can occur. This is the unauthorised use of someone else’s computer to mine cryptocurrency, usually done by hackers that send malicious links to their victim.
Cryptocurrency is unregulated by governments and banks.
