A Beginner’s Dictionary For Crypto Jargon PART 1

The cryptocurrency industry is a relatively new one, yet it includes a variety of specific keywords and phrases which any serious trader or investor should know. The following list is the first in a 2-part segment on crypto jargon which you should definitely know.

• Altcoin – any cryptocurrency which is not Bitcoin, including popular ones such as Ethereum and Litecoin, and about 800 more.
• ASIC – stands for Application Specific Integrated Circuit, meaning silicon processor chips capable of processing the SHA-256 algorithm used to mine Bitcoin and validate the transactions.
• ASIC Miners – the hardware in which the ASIC chip is located in order to function and connect to the Internet.
• Bitcoin – a digital token based on cryptography and invented by the mysterious Satoshi Nakamoto.
• Bitpay – a Bitcoin processing company which facilitates payments using this cryptocurrency.
• Blockchain – an uncentralised, distributed, peer to peer digital ledger.
• Block Reward – the reward which is split between all miners who successfully hash a transaction block.
• BTC – the most common symbol for Bitcoin.
• Charlie Lee – the famed creator of the Litecoin cryptocurrency.
• Charlie Shrem – an early adopter of the cryptocurrency industry, especially Bitcoin.
• Coinbase – one of the world’s favourite cryptocurrency exchanges and wallets.

• Cold Storage – an alternative and safer method of keeping cryptocurrencies when not used in an exchange.
• Cryptocurrency – the term commonly used to describe digital, cryptography-based tokens or money.
• DAO – called the Distributed Autonomous Organisation, this now de-listed company set the record for the largest ICO in history.
• Difficulty – the degree of complexity faced by mining software when it is attempting to hash a new block.
• ETH – the most common symbol for Ether, which is based upon the Ethereum blockchain.
• Ethereum – a blockchain which specialises in running smart contracts.
• Exchange – the platforms, such as Binance and BitMEX where fiat currencies and cryptocurrencies are exchanged.
• Faucet – a website reward system which provides a hundred millionth of a Bitcoin, or a Satoshi, at a time.
• Fiat – meaning let it be in Latin, this is a term associated with traditional, bank-issued money.

• Flippening – the moment, which has never occurred as yet, that an Altcoin surpasses the market capitalisation of Bitcoin.
• Forging – the term refers to proof of stake blockchains where there are no block rewards and forgers (miners) receive transaction fees instead of new coins.
• Fork – the occurrence of a blockchain diverging into different forward paths.
• Genesis Block – the very first block mined in a blockchain.
• Halving – the rate at which each new block rewards created an entire new Bitcoin which is set at halving every four years.
• Hard Wallet – a physical device where cryptocurrencies can be stored securely offline.
• Hash – an algorithm which takes a data set of a pre-established size and converts it to a fixed length and composition.
• Hash Rate – the number of hashes a miner can process at a given time.
• HODL – a slang term for hold your coins.

Go directly to Part 2 of the cryptocurrency jargon.