Cryptocurrencies are a type of digital money based on an algorithm. Cryptocurrencies operate autonomously, outside the classical banking and government systems.
Cryptocurrencies — electronic currencies
Cryptocurrencies are most easily described as an electronic currency that has no physical form. It can be used to pay for similar services and goods, as long as the seller accepts such payment. Therefore, cryptocurrencies have their own value, as a consequence of which they can be called contingent money.
Many currently famous cryptocurrencies work on a similar principle. They use a decentralized system, based in many cases on a blockchain. We have written about this in more detail in another article on our blog.
Briefly, blockchain is a public registry of transactions made with this cryptocurrency. It is managed and updated on an ongoing basis by many people, or to be much more precise, many computers. They are rewarded for their own computations in the form of cryptocurrency units or smaller portions thereof. This activity itself is called digging or mining cryptocurrencies, and the people who do this are called miners.
It should be emphasized that cryptocurrencies apply the technology of cryptography, in other words, complex mathematical calculations that are aimed at encrypting information, to record and verify transactions.
The transaction through a given cryptocurrency occurs specifically between its parties, and only they have full access to it thanks to the corresponding encryption keys, although the accounting record itself is in the public domain.
Because of the specifics of how blockchain works, cryptocurrencies or transactions involving them cannot be faked. You can find out why this is the case from the above mentioned article on our blog.
Which cryptocurrencies are considered to be very common?
Right now, the market for cryptocurrencies is extremely vast. There are over one thousand six hundred cryptocurrencies on the market. Some of the best known cryptocurrencies include Bitcoin, Ethereum, Litecoin or, especially now, Ripple. Bitcoin, the world’s first and highly sought-after cryptocurrency, appeared in 2009 and is attributed to a mysterious man with the alias Satoshi Nakamoto (or the group of people behind the alias). The manifesto published under this pseudonym is considered the de facto manifesto — more or less — of all cryptocurrencies, not just Bitcoin cryptocurrencies. It contains the ideas on which cryptocurrencies are built.
Why were cryptocurrencies created?
Among them is the concern for privacy. This is due to the fact that cryptocurrencies are an alternative means of payment in which transactions are considered private, i.e. the system does not require a third party to complete the transaction. In addition, by using cryptocurrencies, we can transfer money anywhere in the world, even to the Arctic, as long as there is Internet. Many cryptocurrencies are additionally linked to larger projects. Ethereum (ETH) is a great example of this and is both an entire platform and a cryptocurrency that is part of that platform. Ethereum is considered an attractive solution both because of the crowdfunding opportunities offered (ETH tokens) and because of the ability to include smart contracts (smart contracts) in the concluded scenario. After all, cryptocurrencies, of course, can be traded and, as in the case of certain financial instruments, played down.
Characteristics of cryptocurrencies
There are a number of basic principles governing the use, exchange and transactions of cryptocurrencies.
Cryptocurrencies encryption is based on 2 important points — hashing and digital signatures:
- Hashing verifies data integrity, maintains blockchain structure and encrypts account and transaction addresses. It also expresses cryptographic puzzles, which are mathematical problems that allow for so-called mining and the creation of new blocks in the blockchain.
- Digital signatures allow users to prove their own identity as owners of encrypted information without revealing it. The technology is used to sign money transactions. This states that the account holder has consented to the transaction.
- Blockchain technology.
- Blockchain is a type of decentralized, public ledger or, in other words, a list of cryptocurrency transactions. The complete blocks, which consist of the most recent transactions, are written and added to the chain and then stored chronologically as an open, permanent and verifiable record. The peer-to-peer network, which is created by market participants, manages the chain and applies an established protocol to prove new blocks. Each «node» or computer that is connected to the network automatically downloads a copy of the chain. This enables each participant to track transactions without the need for centralized data storage.
Blockchain technology creates a record that cannot be changed without the consent of other participants in the network. The idea for blockchain came from bitcoin founder Satoshi Nakamoto. It has become the inspiration for other applications besides digital money and currencies.
What is Jaxx
The Jaxx wallet platform has been under development since 2014 by Decentral Inc of Toronto, Canada. Its founder, Anthony Di Iorio, is also known as the co-founder of the Ethereum blockchain.
The first public presentation of the product took place in February 2016. And two years later — in March 2018 — the developers announced that Jaxx had been downloaded more than 1.2 million times. In September of the same year, a new version of the wallet was launched — Jaxx Liberty with a completely transformed interface, even more user-friendly.
Being a great choice for newcomers in the crypto industry, Jaxx Crypto Wallet is also in demand by experienced crypto users. In fact, it is one of the best storage for Bitcoin (BTC) and Ethereum (ETH). However, the multicurrency wallet also supports other altcoins such as Litecoin (LTC), Unicorn Gold (UKG), Storm (STO), Gnosis (GNO), Zcash (ZEC), etc. — 80 cryptocurrencies in total.
It’s much more convenient to keep different cryptocurrencies in one wallet — than to load separate storage for each coin. And if you are interested in the online version of the JAXX cryptocurrency wallet, go to jaxx chrome.
Jaxx Liberty Blockchain Wallet
The development of transactions in the cryptocurrency market has created a need for reliable cryptocurrency wallets. One of the most popular offerings is the Jaxx Liberty electronic wallet. This blockchain wallet allows you to store and manage cryptocurrency.
The Jaxx wallet was first introduced to the public in 2016. The founder of the development company is Anthony DI Iorio, co-founder of blockchain Ethereum.
The advantage of the Jaxx wallet is its multi-currency nature. It supports more than 85+ cryptocurrencies at once, without loading a full blockchain.
What currencies does Jaxx wallet support?
Since its inception, the Jaxx multicurrency wallet has steadily increased the number of supported cryptocurrencies. Already soon after its creation, Jaxx supported more than 36 coins. As of April 2018, the wallet supports 62 cryptocurrencies. As of the end of 2019, the list of available currencies on Jaxx Wallet exceeds 85 coins.