What is cryptocurrency?
Follow a simple payment and see how a shared record tracks who can spend digital money.
Money in a record
Most money you use already has a digital record. Your bank keeps a ledger, a list of transactions that it uses to work out your balance. A public cryptocurrency network such as Bitcoin has a shared ledger that many computers can independently check.
Send two practice credits
Imagine Alex can spend five practice credits and sends two to Sam. After the network records the payment, Alex can spend three and Sam can spend two more than before. The computers check that Alex authorized the payment and that those credits were available.
Each network has its own rules
Bitcoin and Ethereum are examples of separate networks. They track their own currencies and set rules for what makes a payment valid. In the lessons and games, you’ll use fictional credits to practice the ideas with no purchases or wallet setup.