One of the biggest trends these days is cryptocurrency (or crypto, for short).
A friend of mine recently commented that an article in Today newspaper was really badly written, while many others have told me that they didn't understand crypto. (Well, neither do I, to be honest, as I am also a layperson. I am not a developer.)
But I have been reading up on this topic recently and also speculate (not invest, as there is a distinction) in crypto, such as ether and bitcoin.
So, I thought I would try to do up a series of simple articles for laypeople like myself so we can all get on the bandwagon.
Maybe, we can even be cool and talk like the developers, computer engineers, and start up founders today. And maybe we can see what the hype is all about too.
So, what is Ethereum?
Ethereum is the community-run technology powering the cryptocurrency, ether (ETH), and thousands of other decentralised applications. [1]
Today, Ethereum is the most actively used blockchain.
A blockchain is a system of recording information in such a way that makes it difficult or impossible for people to change, hack, or cheat the system.
Or, as the technical people explain it, a blockchain is "a digital ledger of transactions that is duplicated and distributed across the entire network of computer systems on the blockchain" [2].
And Ether is the native cryptocurrency of the Ethereum blockchain. That is to say, it is like the coin that is tied to Ethereum, the blockchain.
Currently, Ether is the second largest cryptocurrency after Bitcoin by market value. [3]
Depending on what you read (or who you read), both Bitcoin and Ether have hit all-time highs this year in 2021 because institutional investors and corporations have started buying cryptocurrencies to add to their balance sheets.
As at the time of writing, 1 Ether equals S$4,657.62 or above US$3,500.
Some are speculating (or is it divining?) that, despite its recent 1,500% rise in price in the past year, Ether will go up to US$5,000 to US$10,000 by end 2021 or 2022. [4]
Yes, you read that right. I have included the source in case you think I made up this "fake news".
You might also have heard about NFTs, or Non Fungible Tokens (don't worry if you haven't - as I'm interested in it, I will cover it in a future post here on my blog, Anything that Interests Me).
It is definitely worth reading about.
It is said that user demand for Ether to buy digital assets such as NFTs also could be driving prices higher.
In addition, unlike Bitcoin which is used only for transferring digital value, Ether is not just used as a digital currency, but also supports the Ethereum blockchain on which more types of transactions are possible.
OK, that's it for today.
I am keeping my articles short and sweet, 'cause ain't nobody got time to read long articles and posts these days.
But I do sincerely hope that at least what I write as a layperson will be easily understood by people who are interested in this topic (as I am) but do not have a technical background.
Thank you for reading!
More to come on NFTs, exchanges, Bitcoin, Dogecoin, and more.
Anything that Interests Me! - On Crypto, in particular Ether and Ethereum
Sources cited:
[1] https://ethereum.org/en/
[2] https://www.euromoney.com/learning/blockchain-explained/what-is-blockchain
[3] https://observer.com/2021/05/etherum-founder-buterin-billionaire-cryptocurrency-surge-bitcoin/
[4] https://www.theedgesingapore.com/capital/cryptocurrency/ethers-1500-jump-just-start-crypto-faithfuls
