Recently, people have started to talk about cryptocurrencies at great length. Many of them are posting stories about cryptocurrencies on Instagram. Either they have run out of Instagram Story ideas, or they are investing in a cryptocurrency or two themselves.
With the world engulfed in cryptocurrencies, it makes sense to learn a thing or two about them. Even people who are almost entirely oblivious to cryptocurrencies have heard of Bitcoin, as it sits at the helm of the crypto world. But, what is Litecoin?
What is Litecoin?
Litecoin is a cryptocurrency, i.e., a digital peer-to-peer (P2P) digital cash system that enables quick, nearly zero-cost transfer to any receiver. It was founded in 2011 by Google software engineer Charlie Lee.
It is similar to Bitcoin because it uses the same open-source codebase. Litecoin was never meant to replace or compete with Bitcoin (the highest valued cryptocurrency on the planet). Instead, it was created to complement Bitcoin the way silver does gold.
How is Litecoin Different from Bitcoin?
While Litecoin uses the same open-source codebase as Bitcoin, the two cryptocurrencies have a few technological differences. Here are the main differences between the two:
Transaction speed
Charlie Lee introduced Litecoin because he wanted to reduce the transaction time. While Bitcoin’s transaction time is 10 minutes, Litecoin’s is only 2.5 minutes. In other words, Litecoin can process a much higher volume of transactions.
The mining process
Another thing that Lee wanted to change is the mining process or the extraction of Litecoins. There is a centralized mining system for Litecoin extraction. However, with Bitcoin, both mining and hash rates are slightly less centralized.
Transaction fees & scalability
Bitcoin became exponentially popular over the last few years, resulting in many people wanting to conduct transactions with Bitcoin. As a result, Bitcoin had to raise its transaction fees. This is currently not a problem for Litecoin, which is not as popular as Bitcoin, and hence has low transaction fees.
Segregated Witness
As you know by now, Litecoin has been around for almost as long as Bitcoin has. Bitcoin was created in 2009, and Litecoin came on the scene in 2011. While one would think that Bitcoin’s popularity has stunted Litecoin’s growth, Litecoin may have a future.
In 2017, Charlie Lee pushed for the adoption of ‘Segregated Witness’ or SegWit, which is a process that increases the block size by removing signature data from transactions. In other words, now there is more space to add more transactions to the chain.
Conclusion
Presently, it is impossible to tell how much Litecoin would be worth a few years down the line. Many factors could affect the same. Besides some of its advantages like transaction speed and the mining algorithm, it is bringing in a new audience – gamers.
LiteBringer is a decentralized Litecoin RPG game considered to be an excellent tool to teach users the ins and outs of blockchain.
Maybe you aren’t sold on Litecoin just yet. If you aren’t willing to invest in Litecoin, be sure to keep yourself updated on Litecoin on YouTube. The most informative videos often use custom graphics that creators generate with a random shape generator, to aid in visual learning – keep your eyes peeled for these!Â
In conclusion, there is a lot of positive sentiment around Litecoin, and it looks like Litecoin is here to stay.
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