Pretty soon and into the future, our coins will be considered antiquated technology.

Financing the Future

Think of a world where no government controls how and where you spend money. A world where money doesn’t just have value because the Federal Reserve says it does. Not connected to any government, a way to pay that only you have access to.

That’s what cryptocurrency is: decentralized finance and currency that is all made up of computer code.

Cryptocurrency is the way of the future, as it is a way to anonymously send finances online to anyone, anywhere. 

What Bitcoin Is

Cryptocurrency processes transactions. It makes sure that an online payment sent to you is real and that it goes through without harm.

Owning cryptocurrency is like owning the ability to make a safe, encrypted online transaction that nobody else in the world can see.

Luke Conway, an editor for Investopedia, states that “thousands of computers remove almost all human involvement in the verification process, resulting in less human error and an accurate record of information.”

That’s what’s so special about Bitcoin and cryptocurrency as a whole. There are thousands of different cryptocurrencies, backed by computers and their processing power, not humans with their ability to make mistakes and potentially defraud others.

Cryptocurrency is Used Anywhere

Crypto can be used all over the world to pay for anything.

The beauty of it is that as long as the other party takes crypto, a transaction can be made, with coins having the ability to be sent anonymously.  People can see the transaction in the blockchain, but not who completed it.

Coindesk.com, the leader in online Crypto news and information, puts it this way: “No single institution controls the bitcoin network. The protocol is maintained by a group of volunteer coders, and run by an open network of dedicated computers around the world.”

What is The Blockchain?

All transactions get processed through a big online ledger known as the “Blockchain.” To put it simply, a blockchain will act as a large database.

Through the blockchain, anyone can see all the transactions going in and out.

In the words of Luke Conway at Investopedia, “In Bitcoin’s case, blockchain is used in a decentralized way so that no single person or group has control—rather, all users collectively retain control.”

How Do Blockchain Transfers Work?

The database that the blockchain represents is just a network of computers all over the world that connect together to process transactions.

Marco Iansiti, an editor for the Harvard Business review journal, says that “With blockchain, we can imagine a world in which contracts are embedded in digital code and stored in transparent, shared databases, where they are protected from deletion, tampering, and revision.”

How Bitcoin is Created and Stored

When someone mines bitcoin, they don’t take their pickaxe down into the depths of the earth.

Mining bitcoin is using your computer’s processing power to complete payments all over the world, and you get rewarded for it. It’s surprisingly easy for anyone to mine coins: all you need is anything that can run a mining program and the software to do it. 

Mining Rig

Anyone can go to their computer and start mining with a range of programs. Your computer is used to solve equations and algorithms, which all go in the formation of new coins. 

Coindesk.com, when referencing mining, explains that “anyone can run a node—you just download the free bitcoin software. The drawback is that it consumes energy and storage space – and at time of writing takes hundreds of gigabytes of data.”

It must also be noted that crypto can be bought, sold, and stored just like any other asset or stock you can buy; owners of crypto have their own secure, computer generated password that must be linked up with the “public” password to access their funds. 

Of Course There Are Apps

Wallet apps like Coinbase (and many more) allow individuals to do this easily so that anyone can invest in the future.

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This breakthrough in modern day technology is the way of the future. Decentralized finance is moving forward, and we will soon live in a world where the government doesn’t decide that our physical coins or dollar bills have value.

Through the instant ability to pay, a blockchain database that manages all payments, and the ability for anyone to get involved in investing and storing coins, we can expect the future will have a more fair and balanced approach to the world’s finances.