It’s been a great week for Litecoin so far. The digital currency has seen tremendous growth over the past few days, especially since 14th February. The cryptocurrency was at only $158 on 14th Feb. Since then, it has surged beyond the $200 mark and looks to lead the crypto recovery.
Cryptocurrency, in general, hit a new low a few days ago when its market cap went below $300 billion. However, many coins have started to gain value again and the crypto market is close to $500 billion again. Litecoin has seen the best growth out of all the cryptocurrencies. Ever since the implementation of stricter regulation on cryptocurrency, the market has only suffered. However, many believed it to be a blessing since it drove many people out, mostly those who were there to make quick money.
Therefore, now only those remain who invest in crypto for its intended use of acting as a solution to real-world problems. Now, when the price of a currency increases, it’s due to increased interest in what the currency’s about instead of people joining the hype around a currency. Therefore, it’s most likely what Litecoin has to offer that has resulted in its increased demand. If you’re unsure about what Litecoin is, then here’s all you need to know about Litecoin:
What is Litecoin?
Litecoin is a peer to peer cryptocurrency that lets people make payments across the world instantly and with close to zero costs. The currency has a fully decentralized network and offers improved storage efficiency than other currencies.
“Mathematics secures the network and empowers individuals to control their own finances.”
It’s an open source software which you can run, copy and modify. You can also copy the software and distribute modified copies with no repercussions.
Litecoin was inspired by Bitcoin which is why there are many similarities between the currencies. However, the currency has better transaction times and lesser costs as well which gives the currency the edge over its larger counterpart. Like Bitcoin, Litecoin also uses the blockchain network.
What are the key features?
As mentioned already, Litecoin has faster transaction time with a minimal transaction fee. The LTC blockchain is also capable of handling more transaction volume than Bitcoin. Litecoin also has a total of 84 million coins which will be generated over time compared to BTC’s 21 million.
Litecoin also possesses the ability to generate blocks more quickly. Due to the currency generating blocks quickly, the digital coin can support more transactions without needing to change the software. As a result, confirmation times are drastically reduced.
One key feature that distinguishes Litecoin from many other currencies is its mining algorithm. Unlike many other currencies, Litecoin uses the Scrypt algorithm. This algorithm is mainly the reason for fast LTC transactions. Another benefit of the Scrypt algorithm is that it makes mining much easier. Crypto mining can be hard and in most cases, it’s limited to only those who can spend thousands of dollars on mining computers. However, you don’t need a huge investment to mine Litecoin, and the process is fairly simple too.
Therefore, the ease of mining invites more people to invest in Litecoin. Miners currently receive 25 Litecoins per block, this amount gets halved every 4 years. It’s easy to mine and given Litecoin’s current value, it offers good returns too upon mining. Moreover, Litecoin also has Wallet encryption.
Wallet encryption allows the holder to secure their wallet, something that is much needed in today’s crypto market. Not too long ago, millions of dollars worth cryptocurrency was stolen by hackers and there have been many other instances of people’s wallets being hacked over the past year. Therefore, protection for your wallet is a must. Wallet encryption lets you view and track your transactions. It also requires you to enter your password every time you want to initiate a transaction. This helps protect your account from viruses and trojans that have been spreading around these days.
Litecoin, therefore, is more than just a ‘copy’ of Bitcoin. It is its own cryptocurrency and many regard it as the better version of Bitcoin. Its fast and low-cost transaction times are its most attractive points. Therefore, it’s no surprise that Litecoin is currently going up in value.
How to buy Litecoin?
There are two options to purchasing Litecoin, either with other cryptocurrencies such as Bitcoin or Ethereum or with regular currency. Keep in mind you can only purchase Litecoin using credit cards at the moment. If you’re a PayPal user, then you’ll need to purchase Bitcoin using PayPal and then use that to purchase Litecoin. Before purchasing Litecoin, it is recommended that you do your own research first and invest accordingly.
Once you’ve made the decision to purchase Litecoin, spend some time researching on different Litecoin wallets and pick one.
Once everything is ready, follow this step by step guide in order to purchase Litecoin
- Find an exchange, one of the most reliable ones is Coinbase.
- Sign up and verify your information at Coinbase.
- Coinbase allows you to purchase $500 worth Litecoin using a credit card. Once you fill in more details about yourself, you can increase this limit.
- (OPTIONAL) If you don’t have any cryptocurrency and have PayPal, then purchase Bitcoin. Then you can use that to purchase Litecoin.
- Once you have purchased your Litecoin, withdraw them to your own wallet. It’s never safe to leave your cryptocurrency on an online exchange wallet.
Litecoin also has lots of stuff planned for its users. LitePay, an online payment service by Litecoin just launched recently. LitePay acts as a Visa debit card and lets you easily make cryptocurrency payments across the world. Like a debit card, you can also go to Visa supported ATMs and withdraw money from them. Your Litecoin will be converted into regular currency in real time and the conversion will be instant, therefore negating the effects of price volatility.
Moreover, Litecoin will also team up with PayPal in the future and bring forth LitePal for its users. Litecoin has already cemented itself as one of the top cryptocurrencies in the world. With initiatives like LitePay and LitePal being introduced, it’s clear as to why Litecoin is surging in value. Litecoin has potential to be a top player in the cryptocurrency market, and so far it’s on its way to do just that.