\nThis is not an endorsement of cryptocurrency or any specific provider, service or offering. It is not a recommendation to trade or use any services.\n<\/p><\/div>
What is cryptocurrency?<\/h3>
Cryptocurrencies are digital assets that have value, just like a $10 bill is a physical item with 10 Canadian dollars of value assigned to it.<\/p>
The difference is that crypto is electronic\u2014it only lives on the internet. For a cryptocurrency to have value, its coin must be unique, verifiable and nonreplicable. The Bitcoin blockchain was the innovation that made this possible.<\/p>
Crucial to crypto is the principle of decentralization. There\u2019s no single authority or business like a bank or government that controls crypto, meaning you have much more control over your crypto than you have with your regular money (fiat currency).<\/p>
This idea of sovereignty over your assets and removing reliance on any sort of intermediary is something you\u2019ll hear about a lot. Decentralization also makes crypto a powerful medium of exchange because it minimizes the costs and processing times of transactions.<\/p>
Thanks to these innovations, legacy companies like Visa, PayPal and several banks have also begun adopting cryptocurrency and blockchain technologies.<\/p>
How does cryptocurrency work?<\/h3>Cryptocurrency uses cryptographic technology to secure individual assets on a database called a \u201cblockchain.\u201d A blockchain records transactions on a network in a way that cannot be altered.<\/p>
You can think of a blockchain as hundreds of connected computers sharing information with one another. This builds a ledger of data that can be used to validate the legitimacy and security of each crypto transaction.<\/p>
Some blockchains use a variation of proof-of-work or proof-of-stake consensus algorithms to execute transactions. Proof of work is where the term \u201cBitcoin miners<\/a>\u201d comes from.<\/p>Miners operate powerful computers that solve complex mathematical problems, which helps secure the blockchain.<\/p><\/div>
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Cryptocurrency uses cryptographic technology to secure individual assets on a database called a \u201cblockchain.\u201d A blockchain records transactions on a network in a way that cannot be altered.<\/p>
You can think of a blockchain as hundreds of connected computers sharing information with one another. This builds a ledger of data that can be used to validate the legitimacy and security of each crypto transaction.<\/p>
Some blockchains use a variation of proof-of-work or proof-of-stake consensus algorithms to execute transactions. Proof of work is where the term \u201cBitcoin miners<\/a>\u201d comes from.<\/p> Miners operate powerful computers that solve complex mathematical problems, which helps secure the blockchain.<\/p><\/div>\n