THE BENEFITS OF CRYPTOCURRENCY

Nowadays we do a lot of virtual payments: every time you pay with your bank card, digital money is transferred. In that case you still pay with euros, so it is not cryptocurrency. The big difference with cryptocurrency is the fact that they only exist digitally. There are no banks involved and the currency is separate from countries or governments. Nowadays you can already pay with it at many online shops.

Digital payment with cryptocurrency

Cryptocurrency is therefore a virtual payment method. The “coins” were invented and only exist in the digital world. The advantage is that there are no banks and governments in between. This also means that the normal laws and regulations do not of course apply, but they are working on it. The crypto system is decentralized and open. Users and developers can all contribute to developing and managing the coins.

The first digital currency to be developed was Bitcoin, but there are now hundreds. So these are different currencies, but they have nothing to do with countries or regions. If you own a specific unit of a cryptocurrency (all or part of a coin), you will receive a password for it. You need that password to access your cryptocurrency and to be able to pay money.

Security of cryptocurrency

Although there are no banks involved in cryptocurrency, good care is taken for the security of this digital money. Thousands of parties are involved in the functioning of this money market. All these companies check the transaction history of coins and whether you have enough balance. They monitor whether crypto coins are copied and thus prevent a coin from being issued twice.

The transaction history is therefore of great importance for the fairness and transparency of the cryptocurrency system. For that reason, this history is stored in a blockchain. In principle, a blockchain is a kind of online ledger, in which chains of data are shared between individual parties. Every transaction is saved and can no longer be edited or deleted. Every time a new transaction takes place, it is added to the blockchain. The data is cryptographically encrypted. That is also the reason that this currency is called cryptocurrency.

You can view the data in the blockchain, but you can no longer change it. This guarantees the safety of your digital money: your payment or receipt of crypto coins can no longer be reversed. Making payments with cryptocurrency is therefore safe. All data is stored decentrally (that means on a large number of different computers) and for that reason cannot be hacked.

Use of cryptocurrency

Cryptocurrency is becoming increasingly popular, which makes it possible to pay more with it. There are a large number of different currencies. The 10 best known are:

• Bitcoin
• Litecoin
• Bitcoin Cash
• Ethereum
• Ripple
• Zcash
• Chainlink
• Tron
• Binance Coin
• Tezos

It is not that complicated to buy cryptocurrency. You can find a lot of information via the internet and you can purchase it via websites that offer multiple currencies. You create a wallet (or wallet) where you store your coins. You don't have to buy a whole coin, you can also buy a portion (one-tenth, quarter or half) of a coin. This is possible from 10 euros.

You can pay for everything with your cryptocurrency, but not everything. Officially, this money is not yet legal tender in our country. Not all stores are also open to paying with bitcoins. The reason may be that they have not yet studied it or that they find the volatility of the course too difficult. But more and more stores are accepting cryptocurrency. On the map of Coinmap you can see exactly which stores in the Netherlands you can go to. You can of course also shop online with your cryptocoins. Look at the payment options of a site to see what the options are. Also note that sometimes not all currencies are accepted.

Besides paying with cryptocurrency, you can also trade. You can earn money with your money by buying and selling smartly. However, the market is unpredictable and it can be a risky business. It is therefore worthwhile to first thoroughly immerse yourself in the market and see which currencies are stable or increase or decrease in value. By acting wisely you could earn good money with cryptocurrency.