dollar.Ĭryptocurrencies and digital assets are stored in walletsĬryptocurrencies can be accessed through secure wallets, mostly in mobile apps or hardware devices. DAI, on the other hand, is the world’s first unbiased currency and the leading decentralized stablecoin soft-pegged to the U.S. USDC is a type of cryptocurrency called “stablecoin” and is backed by U.S. USDC and DAI are the two most used digital dollars in DeFi. Ether is widely used in DeFi because the majority of DeFi activities happen on the Ethereum blockchain. Both are the two most widely used cryptocurrencies and the largest by market capitalization. According to CoinMarketCap, there are over 5,000 different cryptocurrencies and digital assets currently.Įthereum and Bitcoin lead by market capitalizationĮther (ticker: ETH) is the native cryptocurrency of the Ethereum blockchain, while Bitcoin (ticker: BTC) is native to the Bitcoin blockchain. The number of cryptocurrencies and digital assets is rising. While blockchains operate independently, they are capable of interoperating. However, digital assets can be issued on multiple blockchains. Anything recorded onto a blockchain can be used as a digital asset. Some wallets, including the Linen App Wallet, pay for its members’ transactions on a blockchain.ĭigital assets are the digital representation of financial assets, such as stocks, payment streams, stablecoins (digital dollars), and even video game assets. Without the fuel – the native cryptocurrency – you won’t be able to drive, meaning take part in a transaction on that particular blockchain. Think of it as the fuel required to drive a car. You need a cryptocurrency to enter into a transaction on its native blockchain. These cryptocurrencies are used to transact on specific blockchains, such as Bitcoin and Ethereum. There are two major types of cryptocurrencies: Think of cryptocurrencies as digital money for investing, trading, and transacting. Cryptographic functions are used to conduct transactions, ensuring that they are safe. They can be traded directly between two parties without the need for a traditional financial institution to act as an intermediary.

What are cryptocurrencies exactly?Ĭryptocurrencies are internet-based mediums of exchange. They provide easy access to a variety of products and services. Cryptocurrencies are powered by blockchain technology and transactions are transparent and immutable. We recommend reading our post on blockchains before diving into this one because cryptocurrencies leverage blockchain technology.Ĭryptocurrencies haven’t been around for long, but they are already revolutionizing the way we invest and transact. We explain cryptocurrencies and digital assets in detail.

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