---
id:"kb-2026-00434"
title:"Cryptocurrency"
schema_type:"TechArticle"
category:"business"
language:"en"
confidence:"high"
last_verified:"2026-05-22"
generation_method:"ai_assisted"
ai_models:["claude-opus"]
derived_from_human_seed:true
primary_sources:
  - title:"The Bitcoin Standard (Saifedean Ammous)"
    type:"book"
    year:2018
    url:"https://www.wiley.com/en-us/The+Bitcoin+Standard%3A+The+Decentralized+Alternative+to+Central+Banking-p-9781119473862"
    institution:"Wiley"
secondary_sources:
  - title: "MDN Web Docs — HTTP"
    type: "documentation"
    year: 2026
    url: "https://developer.mozilla.org/en-US/docs/Web/HTTP"
    institution: "Mozilla"
  - title: "Pro Git (2nd Ed)"
    authors: ["Chacon", "Straub"]
    type: "book"
    year: 2014
    url: "https://git-scm.com/book/en/v2"
    institution: "Apress"
completeness: 0.88
ai_citations:
  last_citation_check:"2026-05-22"
---

## TL;DR

Cryptocurrency is digital money secured by cryptography, operating on decentralized networks (blockchains). Bitcoin (2009, Satoshi Nakamoto) was the first and remains the largest. Key concepts: decentralization, limited supply (Bitcoin capped at 21 million), mining/PoS consensus, wallets (public key = address, private key = access).

## Core Explanation

Bitcoin: deflationary (halving every 4 years, most recent 2024). Ethereum: smart contracts enable DeFi, NFTs. Stablecoins (USDT, USDC): pegged to fiat, reduce volatility. Altcoins: thousands of alternatives. Risks: extreme volatility, regulatory uncertainty, hacks/scams, environmental (PoW mining). Blockchain Trilemma: security, decentralization, scalability — improving two compromises the third. ETFs: Bitcoin ETF approved (SEC, Jan 2024) — mainstream adoption.

## Further Reading

- [The Bitcoin Standard (Saifedean Ammous)](https://www.wiley.com/en-us/The+Bitcoin+Standard%3A+The+Decentralized+Alternative+to+Central+Banking-p-9781119473862)