Litecoin (COIN: $LTC) is nearly as old as Bitcoin and is one of the most popular cryptocurrencies in current times. Furthermore, it is quite similar to Bitcoin, but it has a different algorithm. The coin has maintained its popularity among other cryptocurrencies.
The main aim behind the development of Litecoin was to overcome a few Bitcoin issues, such as slow transaction speeds and mining algorithms. In this article, we will get you through the nitty-gritty details of LITECOIN, its history, and tokenomics. Let’s dive into it.
What is Litecoin?
Litecoin is a decentralized and peer-to-peer network that allows internet users to send payments all over the world with much faster transaction speeds than Bitcoin. It is most recognized and also known as silver to Bitcoin’s gold. Moreover, the coin was developed with Bitcoin open-source code, but with various modifications.
Litecoin uses a different hashing algorithm called Scrypt (also pronounced as es-scrypt), whereas Bitcoin uses SHA-256. Scrypt was chosen to make it more accessible to individual miners and reduce the advantage of using specialized, high-powered mining hardware (ASICs).
Furthermore, Litecoin has only 2.5 minutes of block time, which is much more affordable and far better than Bitcoin’s block time of 10 minutes. Litecoin has substantial trade volume, liquidity, and industry support, making it a trusted means of transaction complementary to Bitcoin.
History of Litecoin
Litecoin was developed by Charlie Lee in 2011. He has also worked as a software engineer for Google and as the director of engineering at Coinbase. This coin is also known as one of the first altcoins.
Moreover, when it was launched, it became a robust competitor to Bitcoin and resonated with it as well. The developer, Charlie, also mentioned it as the “lite version of Bitcoin”. Because of this, Litecoin does contain Bitcoin features with the possibility of improvement for its users. The Litecoin market hit over $1 billion in market capitalization in 2013 and continued to grow after that.
In 2017, Litecoin shot up by 8,200%. It was trading at an all-time high price of $350.52, according to Coinmarketcap. At that time, it became one of the most lucrative investments for traders. Litecoin has over 81 million coins in circulation, while there is only a maximum supply of 21 million in Bitcoin.
What Makes Litecoin Standout?
After Bitcoin, LTC was the most accepted cryptocurrency after Bitcoin in 2011. Charlie developed this coin by modifying it to a Bitcoin source code and adding more splendid features, which Bitcoin lacks, such as fees and transaction costs.
Litecoin is one of the most well-known and widely adopted cryptocurrencies. It’s listed on numerous exchanges and has a relatively high level of liquidity, making it easy to buy, sell, and trade.
It has secure wallet encryption, so you don’t worry about your funds. You can view your transaction history and balance in your Litecoin wallet. As we have mentioned above, LTC has a much faster block time than Bitcoin, which means transactions are confirmed more quickly, making Litecoin a preferred choice for those who value faster transaction speeds.
Tokenomics
At the time of writing, Litecoin is trading at $70.6, increasing by +1,538.57% from it launch price of $4.30 per coin. It currently has a market cap of $5.2B and a daily trading volume of $312M. It is ranked 17th out of 2M+ active cryptocurrencies on CoinMarketCap.
Social Media
Litecoin’s social media accounts include:
Twitter: 1M Followers
Telegram: 9,545 Members
Reddit: 356K Members
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