Imagine for a moment, what it would be like to completely move away from physical cash; not just going over to plastic. A payment method where your transaction never even gets close to a tangible asset of wealth such as cash or gold. A truly worldwide currency designed from the ground up to be completely decentralized, meaning banks and government agencies would not be able to set its value.

Since the global pandemic, card payment usage has increased to account for 27% of all payments in 2020, up by 20% from 2016 as we tried to limit our contact with potential disease vectors. But what if there were a way to pay for things that made even this solution seem archaic and insecure?
So called cryptocurrencies such as Bitcoin are one such option.
Unlike traditional ‘fiat’ currencies (a currency not backed by a physical commodity like gold or silver, but rather by the government itself that issues it) like the US dollar or the euro, Bitcoin isn’t controlled by any central authority, such as a government or bank. Instead, it operates on a decentralized network of computers called the blockchain.

The Blockchain
You can think of the blockchain as kind of like an electronic spreadsheet that keeps track of all bitcoin transactions. Every transaction, be it a house or a cup of overpriced coffee get divided into groups known as blocks. These blocks are then linked together in, you guessed it, a chain. This chain is then distributed across thousands of computers across the globe, all of which means that it is next to impossible for a bad actor to edit or tamper with the information. So you could not easily pull bit coins out of thin air because there would be no ledger entry for it and this could lead to the rest of your crypto wallet being rendered worthless.

How does Bitcoin work?
created in 2008, by a mysterious person or group of people working under the pseudonym ‘Satoshi Nakamoto’ Bitcoin is a decentralized digital currency allowing peer-to-peer transactions without banks, currency or any physical token at all. The value of Bitcoin is determined by supply and demand. There will never be more than 21 million Bitcoin in exitance at anyone time, Bitcoin’s price increases when demand exceeds supply and decreases when demand falls. Bitcoin is not linked to the inherent value of a resource like oil or gold and is decentralized, Meaning that no government has control over its value and the value of Bitcoin is set by the free market like any rare commodity.

What is a Crypto wallet?
A Bitcoin or crypto wallet is a kind of digital repository where you can store your bitcoin and other cryptocurrencies (such as Ethereum and Doge coin) as well as any NFT’s (non fungible tokens) that you own. (NFTs are a bit like unique digital trading cards, but they are a whole other story) A Crypto wallet is for storing the encryption material giving access to a Bitcoin public address and enabling transactions.
A bit like the password on your online bank account, the digital wallet does not physically hold your currency but is instead a way of accessing it, like a key.

Should I invest in Bitcoin?
It’s very far from the purview of this blog to offer finical advice, however many people have had very good returns on investing in bit coin. However as more and more people get in on the action these ‘Cinderella stories’ are becoming more and more few and far between. And although I am not qualified to advise you Warren Buffet, the legendary investment guru is very much on the record as being against the idea of Bitcoin as an investment.