You have to admit it. If you are new to cryptocurrency and its wide scope of investment, there is jargon that you will have to get used to, and quickly. You may be adept at trading, but unless you don’t achieve a degree of familiarity with cryptocurrency terms and their meanings, you won’t be much of a success in this ever-growing investment area. Vocabulary that is used on a daily basis is essential to know as this defines your understanding of the way to trade and invest in cryptocurrency. In turn, the grasp of appropriate terminology will help you to gauge patterns of trading and trends in pricing in a much more efficient manner.

The Lingo of Crypto

The word ‘cryptocurrency’ is itself alien to many investors, not just lay people at large. However novel this form of investment may be, you have to keep up with the times and know whatever you must to invest wisely. In the world of online trading, you may well be used to conventional bonds and stocks, but now you will have to be fluent with acronyms that you have been, thus far, prevented from daily use. Like any investment you choose, you first have to acclimate yourself with the understanding of what you are investing in, especially with a nascent and speculative, yet evolving, asset such as ‘crypto’ (the short version of cryptocurrency). One thing to consider, before you learn the terminology and invest, is that experts suggest putting your wealth into crypto only if you are willing to lose it at first. The investment may be risky for newbies and seasoned investors, so a 5% wealth allocation is good to begin with.

Here’s Some ‘Crypto’ You Should Know

It is indeed ironic that the word ‘cryptocurrency’ has the suffix ‘crypto’ and almost sounds like the word ‘cryptic’. In terms of crypto jargon, there are some common terms that you should begin with, and these are mentioned and explained below:

• Altcoin - The main cryptocurrency, as everyone knows, is Bitcoin, today. Altcoin is a common term to refer to any cryptocurrency that is not Bitcoin. It could be anything from the less popular coins like Ethereum to others that have less of a value in the crypto market.

• Bitcoin - This is the name of the first cryptocurrency created, and it is one of the most valuable.

• Blockchain - A digital way of keeping records, blockchain is the basis of technology of cryptocurrency. It is the result of sequences of blocks, building on one another, and creating an unchangeable and permanent ledger of all transactions undertaken.

• Coinbase - This is a centralised exchange of cryptocurrency. This was the first exchange of cryptocurrency to become public at NASDAQ.

• Cryptocurrency - This is the main concept that you require to have clarity about while engaging in cryptocurrency investment. Cryptocurrency is a digital form of currency that is also decentralised. Although digital, it has value and can be used to purchase and sell items. Additionally, it acts as a long-term value investment.

• DApp - Decentralised applications, or DApps, are digital applications/programs existing and running on a blockchain network of computers instead of just on a single computer.

• DAO - A DAO (decentralised autonomous organisation) is a method of organising individuals  and their corresponding interests as they prevail on the internet, using blockchain technology.

• DeFi - A short form of ‘decentralised finance’, this represents the complete ecosystem of apps and protocols related to cryptocurrency.

• Ethereum - This is the next largest and most popular cryptocurrency after Bitcoin, in terms of trade and volume.

• Hash Rates - Hash rates are measures (metrics) of all the computational power used by a cryptocurrency network processing transactions in blockchains.

• Tokenomics - This is a term that expresses the behaviour of a particular cryptocurrency, and what influences its value in the long run.

• Web 3.0 - This is the third generation of internet services, with the goal of creating more connected, intelligent, and open websites.

Disclaimer
This article is purely for educational purposes. It is not to be read as advice to invest into digital assets or cryptocurrencies. It is prudent to have your finances secured through more trusted and regulated instruments such as stocks, mutual funds, debt funds, fixed deposits, liquid funds, etc. It is also important to have necessary insurances and emergency funds in place. Click on this link to learn more. You can also click this link to open a demat account.

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