Crypto Playbook

Crypto
Playbook
Rohas Nagpal
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Money is the most universal and
most efficient system of mutual trust
ever devised.
Even people who do not believe in the

same god or obey the same king
are more than willing to use
the same money.
Yuval Harari
Edition date: 14 March 2022

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Rohas Nagpal
Rohas Nagpal is an author, amateur boxer, Blockchain architect, and
retired hacker.
To add more logic and math to crypto price predictions, he has developed
the Crypto Asset Valuation Engine (CAVE).
Currently, he is the Chief Blockchain Architect of the Hybrid Finance

(HyFi) Blockchain.
He writes weekly columns for NDTV and Mint.
He also conducts the free Blockchain ADDS (Administration, Design,

Development and Security) course.
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Legal stuff
I have to tell you this. My scary lawyers insist….
(c) 2022 Rohas Nagpal. All rights reserved.
The information in my documents, social media networks, websites, and

videos is for general information only and should not be taken as
constituting professional advice from me.
I am not a financial adviser. You should consider seeking independent legal,

financial, taxation, or other advice to check how the information relates to
your unique circumstances.
I am not liable for any loss caused, whether due to negligence or otherwise
arising from the use of, or reliance on, the information provided directly or
indirectly.
I link to external resources for your convenience. I am selective about them

but I don’t endorse them. No investigation has been made of common-law
trademark rights in any word. Words that are known to have current
trademark registrations are shown with an initial capital and are also
identified as trademarks.
The inclusion or exclusion of any word, or its capitalization, in this book is

not, however, an expression of the author’s opinion as to whether or not it is
subject to proprietary rights, nor is it to be regarded as affecting the validity
of any trademark.
This book is provided "as is" and the author makes no representations or
warranties, express or implied either in respect of this book or the software,
websites and other information referred to in this book. By way of example,
but not limitation, the author makes no representations or warranties of
merchantability or fitness for any particular purpose or that the use of
licensed software, database or documentation will not infringe any third
party patents, copyrights, trademarks or other rights.
Images courtesy: Unsplash, Pixabay.com, Freepik.com
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Contents
Part A – The Basics
1. What are Blockchains?............................................................................09

2. What Are Cryptos? .................................................................................12
3. The 11 types of Cryptos...........................................................................14
4. Crypto addresses, keys, and wallets.......................................................17
5. Common crypto scams............................................................................28
6. Don't invest in stuff you don't understand................................................30
7. Crypto Tax in India...................................................................................31
8. Crypto Metrics.........................................................................................32
9. The myth of Crypto decentralization........................................................40
10. Currency Cryptos..................................................................................42
11. DAO Cryptos.........................................................................................43
12. DeFi (Decentralized Finance) Cryptos..................................................45
13. Gaming & Metaverse Cryptos...............................................................49
14. Web 3.0 Cryptos....................................................................................51
15. Decentralized Exchanges (DEXs) ........................................................53
16. Non-Fungible Tokens (NFT) .................................................................54
17. How to value Cryptos............................................................................58
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Part B – FUTURE 50 Cryptos
1. Aave (AAVE) ...........................................................................................62

2. Algorand (ALGO).....................................................................................63
3. Arweave (AR)..........................................................................................64
4. Audius (AUDIO).......................................................................................65
5. Avalanche (AVAX)...................................................................................66
6. Axie Infinity (AXS)....................................................................................67
7. Balancer (BAL)........................................................................................69
8. Basic Attention Token (BAT)....................................................................70
9. Binance Coin (BNB) ...............................................................................72
10. Bitcoin (BTC).........................................................................................74
11. Bitcoin Cash (BCH)...............................................................................81
12. Cardano (ADA)......................................................................................82
13. Celo (CELO)..........................................................................................84
14. Chainlink (LINK)....................................................................................85
15. Chiliz (CHZ)...........................................................................................87
16. Compound (COMP)...............................................................................88
17. Curve DAO Token (CRV).......................................................................89
18. Dash (DASH).........................................................................................90
19. Decentraland (MANA)...........................................................................91
20. Decred (DCR)........................................................................................92
21. Dogecoin (DOGE).................................................................................93
22. Enjin Coin (ENJ)....................................................................................94
23. Ether (ETH)...........................................................................................95
24. Fantom (FTM).......................................................................................97
25. Filecoin (FIL).........................................................................................99
26. Flow (FLOW).......................................................................................101
27. FTX Token (FTT).................................................................................102
28. Gala (GALA).......................................................................................103
29. Helium (HNT)......................................................................................104
30. Litecoin (LTC)......................................................................................105
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31. Livepeer (LPT).....................................................................................107
32. Maker (MKR).......................................................................................108
33. Monero (XMR).....................................................................................109
34. PancakeSwap (CAKE)........................................................................110
35. Polkadot (DOT)....................................................................................112
36. Polygon (MATIC).................................................................................114
37. Siacoin (SC) .......................................................................................116
38. Solana (SOL).......................................................................................117
39. Stacks (STX).......................................................................................118
40. Stellar (XLM).......................................................................................120
41. SushiSwap (SUSHI)............................................................................121
42. Terra (LUNA).......................................................................................122
43. Tezos (XTZ).........................................................................................123
44. The Graph (GRT)................................................................................124
45. The Sandbox (SAND)..........................................................................125
46. Theta (THETA)....................................................................................126
47. Uniswap (UNI).....................................................................................127
48. VeChain (VET)....................................................................................128
49. Waves (WAVES)..................................................................................129
50. Zcash (ZEC)........................................................................................130
Part C – Start your crypto journey
1. The 11 ways to profit from Crypto..........................................................132

2. Building your Crypto portfolio................................................................135
3. FUTURE Indexes..................................................................................137
4. Useful resources...................................................................................138
5. Glossary of crypto terms.......................................................................139
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Part A
The Basics
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1. What are blockchains?
A blockchain is typically a bunch of computers (nodes) connected to

each other. All of these computers contain the same information (e.g.
a ledger of transactions).
Let’s say Svetlana borrows 10,000 rupees from me. She is supposed to
return it in a week but doesn’t. I remind her but she has conveniently
“forgotten” about it. What can I do? Nothing, except never lending her
anything ever again!
Now suppose, at the time of lending the money, a few friends are present.
They all clicked a pic or shot a video of me lending Svetlana the money and
her promising to return it in a week. And each of these friends posts the
pic / video on Instagram, Facebook, etc. Now that is solid evidence. And
Svetlana can’t really delete all these videos / pics from the Internet.
Now that’s something like a blockchain.
A blockchain is typically a bunch of computers (nodes) connected to each

other. All of these computers contain the same information (e.g. a ledger of
transactions). To “hack” this information, you will need to “hack” most of
these computers at the same time. And that’s a pretty tough thing to do!
There are many blockchains in the world. The Bitcoin Blockchain is the first
and oldest one. It records all transactions of the bitcoin cryptocurrency.
Anyone can run a node of this blockchain. All you need is a computer with
enough storage space and a strong Internet connection.
Some of the most popular blockchains are:

1. Algorand
2. Avalanche
3. Binance Smart Chain
4. Cardano
5. Celo
6. Ethereum (Mainnet)
7. Fantom
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8. Flow
9. Polkadot
10. Polygon
11. Solana
12. Stacks
13. Stellar
14. Terra
15. Tezos
16. Waves
For more on each of these blockchains, see:

https://rohas.substack.com/p/introduction-to-16-public-blockchains
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For a deep-dive into Blockchain technology, you may find these
resources useful:
Video on "Blockchain Basics":

https://youtu.be/O535GIscUxo
Video on "Introduction to Ethereum":

https://youtu.be/cF-Io_SmSj0?t=84
Video on "Introduction to 15 Public Blockchains":

https://youtu.be/oSGOfcePjKw?t=73
"How to send an email to an Ethereum address":

https://rohas.substack.com/p/how-to-send-an-email-to-an-ethereum
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2. What Are Cryptos?
A Blockchain can have 1 or more “smart assets”. Calling these assets
cryptocurrencies is not accurate because all blockchain smart assets do
NOT work as currencies.
The Indian law calls them “virtual digital assets”. I prefer to simply call them
“Cryptos”.
There are 9000+ Cryptos being actively traded in 450+ exchanges across
50,000+ market pairs.
Based on my analysis, Cryptos can be divided into 11 categories:
R = Ready money e.g. Bitcoin (BTC)

O = Open Blockchain Tokens e.g. Wrapped Asset Token (WRAP)
H = Hush / privacy coins e.g. Monero (XMR)
A = Application coins e.g. Filecoin (FIL)
S = Security tokens e.g. Exodus
N = Non-Fungible Tokens (NFTs) e.g. Crypto Kitties
A = Algorithmic stablecoins e.g. Frax (FRAX)
G = Governance tokens e.g. Uniswap (UNI)
P = Public Blockchain natives e.g. Ether (ETH)
A = Asset-backed tokens e.g. Tether (USDT)
L = Lending / Borrowing cryptos e.g. Aave (AAVE)
I will go deeper into these 11 categories in the next lesson.
For now, let’s understand how Cryptos are created. There are 2 common
ways of creating Cryptos. One is the style used by Bitcoin and the other is
the style used by Ethereum tokens.
Bitcoin-style Cryptos
In the Bitcoin-style, there are a bunch of computers / entities called miners

who are constantly trying to solve mathematical puzzles. Roughly every 10
minutes, one of these miners wins this race to solve the puzzle.
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This miner wins a reward which is currently 6.25 bitcoins. That’s about
$240,000. Yes, you read that right. Every 10 minutes there is someone
getting $240,000 worth of bitcoin.
But don’t get too jealous. Mining is a very expensive operation and requires
tons of money to be spent on computers and electricity. And you can never
be sure how much you will actually end up earning.
Many years ago anyone could mine or create bitcoins using a laptop! Well,
not anymore. Today you need a ton of computing power for this.
Another thing to remember is that in most Bitcoin-style Cryptos, there is no

“pre-mining”. This means that no Cryptos are created upfront and
distributed to the project founders. The blockchain starts with 0 Cryptos and
new Cryptos are “created” and earned by miners.
Ethereum-token style Cryptos
In the Ethereum-token style, you can create your own Crypto in minutes.
My daughters were quite fed up hearing about dog-themed Cryptos. So

they decided to create their own cat-themed Crypto. All they needed to do
was customize a smart contract and ‘publish’ it to the Ethereum blockchain.
That’s it! In a few minutes, they had created a new Crypto with a supply of 7
billion - roughly one for each human on Earth. True story.
There are some other styles of Cryptos also, but that’s a story for another
day.
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3. The 11 types of
Cryptos
There are 9000+ Cryptos being actively traded in 450+ exchanges across
50,000+ market pairs.
Based on my analysis, Cryptos can be divided into 11 categories:
1. Ready money
Ready money Cryptos are those that can be used to buy and sell stuff or
which can be quickly converted to ‘cash’.
Examples: Bitcoin (BTC), Bitcoin Cash (BCH), Litecoin (LTC), and fiat-
pegged stablecoins such as Tether (USDT).
2. Open Blockchain Tokens
An Open Blockchain Token (OBT) is a unique form of crypto recognized

under the laws of Wyoming, US. An OBT must be exchangeable for
specified consumptive purposes services e.g. software, content, or real/
tangible personal property.
Example: Wrapped Asset Token (WRAP)
3. Hush coins
Did you know that Bitcoin isn’t 100% anonymous? All its transactions are
recorded on its publicly available Blockchain. That’s what led to the birth of
hush coins or privacy coins - some of which are private by default, while
others let the users decide if they want to activate the functionality or not.
Example: Monero (XMR)
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4. Application coins
Application coins are those which are part of a specific use case. Example:
Filecoin (FIL) is the native Crypto of the Filecoin network. It can be used to
pay miners to store/distribute data and to retrieve information. Storage
providers guarantee a minimum service level by providing FIL as collateral.
5. Security tokens
Security tokens are like equity shares and represent ownership of a

company.
Example: Exodus
6. Non-Fungible Tokens (NFTs)
Non-Fungible Tokens (NFT) are the Crypto versions of things like art and
real estate. They are used as digital proof-of-ownership of the underlying
asset. NFTs can be of many types, including art, collectibles (trading cards,
sneakers), domains, virtual game items (avatars, skins, weapons, etc).
Example: CryptoKitties
7. Algorithmic stablecoins
Algorithmic stablecoins are Cryptos whose price stability is maintained by

an algorithm. They are different from fiat-pegged stablecoins whose stability
is maintained by the fiat currency they are pegged to.
Example: Frax (FRAX)
8. Governance tokens
Governance tokens give holders a vote in a project’s development.

Example: Uniswap (UNI)
9. Public Blockchain natives
Using a public blockchain involves the payment of gas fees or transaction

fees. This fee is payable in the native Crypto of that blockchain.
Example: Ether (ETH)
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10. Asset-backed tokens
An asset-backed token or a Wrapped Asset is a blockchain token pegged to

or collateralized by an asset such as art, gold, fiat currency, debt, equity
shares, trade invoices, real estate, etc. It’s called a “wrapped” asset or
token because the original asset is put in a “wrapper” or “digital vault” that
enables the wrapped version to be traded on a blockchain.
Example: Coffee coin
11. Lending / Borrowing Cryptos
These tokens make it easy for investors to borrow and lend funds in a
Decentralised Finance market.
Example: Aave (AAVE)
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4. Crypto addresses,
keys, and wallets
The first thing to know is that cryptos are very different from other stuff that
you invest in.
When you buy gold, you actually get coins (or bricks) of the shiny metal.
You can keep these coins safe in… a safe!
When you buy a house, you actually get physical possession of it.
Crypto is very different. You don’t really get anything physical. Your Crypto
journey starts with a ‘wallet’.
This is what a typical Bitcoin wallet looks like:
[private] =>
fa9af8856397ab2fcd0546cd248791ad9a3046aa3d49fddbdc380ccbce4a5527
[public] =>
03c3948b65fc5c86e74af384cd5ef965dc5bf0e940d7ecafd98dc75517a9d45efc
[address] => 1Mk13r5uu51F5jQ6yGuBPxkuZw91nM4MeY
[wif] => L5crYHJ3wP1KF88guJChXPDaqNJ6dS3WBv56JN1o491K7FdMtXdd
If you write this down on a piece of paper, it would be called a… paper

wallet.
The address is similar to your bank account or UPI ID. Anyone can send
crypto to your address. If you send crypto to the “wrong” address, it’s gone
forever!
Also, remember that the same address doesn’t work for all cryptos e.g. a
Bitcoin address won’t work for Dogecoin.
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The private key is what you would need to “sign” transactions i.e. to send
crypto to someone else. If someone gets hold of your private key, they can
transfer all your crypto to another address. This is what happens in most
crypto ‘hacks’.
Anything signed with your private key can be verified using your public
key. The Wallet Import Format (WIF) is a shorter version of the private
key. A crypto wallet is designed to:
1.  store your public and private keys,
2.  send and receive cryptos,
3.  Monitor ‘balances’, and
4.  interact with supported blockchains.
Usually, people store their crypto in a mobile or web wallet. That’s a

mobile app or web service that stores your keys and addresses.
A hot wallet is one that is connected to the Internet and is considered the
most vulnerable to hacking. Examples include mobile wallets and crypto
exchanges.
Metamask is a popular browser-based crypto wallet.
A cold wallet, on the other hand, is not connected to the Internet and is
considered more secure. Examples include hardware wallets and paper
wallets. There are many free services for generating paper wallets e.g.
Future Money Wallet.
Paper wallets are inconvenient to use but are the safest option. Consider
using them if you have a large amount of crypto to keep for a long period of
time.
Hardware wallets are a little pricey and there’s always the risk of losing or
breaking them. I am speaking from experience!
Software wallets are free and very easy to use. But if you accidentally
delete them, your crypto is gone forever. Again, I am speaking from
experience! So remember to back up the seed phrase - a bunch of words
that you can write down.
An example of a seed phrase is:

history lumber quote board young dove robust kit invite plastic regular skull
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bitaddress
www.bitaddress.org is a JavaScript Client-Side Bitcoin Wallet Generator. It

enables Bitcoin addresses and their corresponding private keys to be
conveniently generated in a web browser.
Live site: https://www.bitaddress.org
To generate a Bitcoin wallet (which is a Bitcoin address and its

corresponding Bitcoin private key), simply move your mouse randomly on
the bitaddress page.
A wallet will be generated in your web browser. It will look something like
this:
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In the example above, your bitcoin address is:
1AHr3RDJS7v8ruFLbVoxXsgVeGqYqALqQ8
and your private key is:

Kytj7WpTKxtV7XnVLzv72BPpFRTwDi82NTmjUEKc9x1o8ctVHhrT
Together they constitute your wallet.
Things to remember:
q  To safeguard your wallet, you can print the Bitcoin address and private
key.
q  Remember to keep a backup copy of the private key in a safe location.

If you print your wallet then store it in a zip lock bag to keep it safe from
water. Treat a paper wallet like cash.
q  If you leave/refresh the site or press the "Generate New Address"

button then a new private key will be generated and the previously
displayed private key will not be retrievable.
q  Your Bitcoin private key should be kept a secret. Whomever you share
the private key with has access to spend all the bitcoins associated with
that address.
q  You can add funds to this wallet by instructing others to send bitcoins to
your Bitcoin address.
q  You can check your balance by going to www.blockchain.com/explorer

and entering your Bitcoin address.
q  You can spend your bitcoins by downloading and using a bitcoin p2p
client and importing your private key to the p2p client wallet.
Open source project
The bitaddress.org project provides an all-in-one HTML document with

embedded JavaScript/CSS/Images. The JavaScript is readable not minified
and contains no XMLHttpRequest's (no AJAX). The benefit of this technique
is you can load the JavaScript locally and trust that the JavaScript did not
change after being loaded.
Github repo
https://github.com/pointbiz/bitaddress.org
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Argent
Argent is a crypto wallet that

can be used to:
•  store and send crypto,
•  borrow crypto,
•  earn interest, and
•  invest.
https://www.argent.xyz
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AlphaWallet
AlphaWallet is an open-source,
production-ready and easy-to-
customise white-label wallet.
https://alphawallet.com
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ZenGo
ZenGo is the first keyless crypto wallet.
It uses facial biometrics instead of passwords,

private keys and seed phrases. It also acts like a
‘savings account’ by making it easy to earn interest
on your crypto holdings.
https://zengo.com
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Pillar
Pillar is a non-custodial, community-owned wallet with its own L2 Payment

Network.
Core features include:
q  100% encrypted chats with your contacts.
q  Unlimited transactions without fees in any token.
q  Buy crypto directly - USD, GBP and EUR available in the app.
q  Pillar replaces alpha-numeric addresses with simple usernames.
q  Pillar Offers Engine enables you to find the best deals to swap your
Tokens, all in one place.
https://pillarproject.io
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MyEtherWallet (MEW) is a free, client-side interface
for interacting with the Ethereum blockchain.
It can be used for generating wallets,

and interacting with smart contracts.
https://www.myetherwallet.com
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MetaMask is a crypto wallet that is available as a browser extension and an
app for Android and iOS. It can be used to buy Ethereum with a debit card
or Apple Pay.
Key features include a key vault, secure login, token wallet, and token
exchange.
https://metamask.io

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Some of the features of Trust Wallet are:
•  Buy Bitcoin in under 5 minutes.
•  Easily earn interest on the crypto in your wallet.
•  See your collectibles, art & non-fungible digital assets in one place.
•  Exchange your crypto within the app.
•  Track charts and prices within the wallet.
https://trustwallet.com
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5. Common crypto
scams
1. Blackmail
Victims receive an email claiming that their computer has been ‘hacked’ and
the hacker has hijacked their web camera and recorded ‘intimate’ moments.
The scammers then threaten to release the video online unless some
Bitcoin is paid to them.
2. Fake Exchanges
A ‘fake’ exchange tricks investors by offering Bitcoin or other cryptos for a
very low price. And then they steal your money!
3. Free Giveaways
Scammers offer free cryptos in exchange for a small ‘registration fee’. Once
you pay the fees, they vanish!
4. Impersonation
Scammers create fake social media accounts that impersonate famous
people. These accounts are used to carry out a variety of frauds.
5. Malware
Many victims end up downloading malicious software and apps. These
apps can change crypto addresses when they’re copy-pasted from the
victim’s clipboard. The result - you end up sending crypto to the scammer’s
address instead of the actual person you want to pay.
6. Meet-in-person attacks
Never meet anyone in person to buy crypto. You could get robbed and even
murdered! Scammers may also pay you in counterfeit currency in exchange
for your crypto.
7. Phishing emails
Never engage with emails that ask for your seed phrase, private keys, or
passwords. These emails may look authentic but remember that there is no
legitimate reason for anyone to ask for your seed phrase, private keys, or
passwords.
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8. Phishing websites
People land up on phishing websites by clicking on links in fake emails and
sometimes even through search engine results. These websites can steal
your passwords and even fool you into installing malware.
9. Ponzi Schemes
Beware of schemes where you are offered a large guaranteed return in
exchange for a small deposit.
10. Pyramid Schemes

Beware of ‘pyramid schemes’ which promise you high returns based on the
number of people you invite into the crypto network.
11. Pump-and-Dumps
In a pump-and-dump scheme, scammers artificially ‘pump’ up the price of a
crypto and sell it to unsuspecting victims. Once enough people have bought
the crypto, the scammers disappear and the value of the crypto crashes to
near-zero.
12. Scam coins and rug-pulls

While there are many great cryptos, there are also many scam coins. Be
careful while investing in new cryptos. Check out the team, whitepaper,
website, and other available information carefully before investing.
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6. Don't invest in stuff
you don't understand
This happened recently...
A crypto investor lost $500,000 after sending wrapped Ether (wETH)

directly into a wETH wrapping smart contract address.
wETH came into existence as a way for Ether (ETH) to conform to the
ERC-20 token standard so that it can be traded directly with altcoins minted
on the Ethereum blockchain.
To wrap Ether, users first send ETH to the wETH smart contract address
and receive an equivalent token in return.
However, to unwrap wETH, users must either swap for ETH on a

decentralized exchange like Uniswap (UNI) or call the withdrawal function in
the wETH smart contract.
Instead, the investor sent the wETH directly back into the wETH smart
contract address in the hopes of receiving ETH back.
Unfortunately for the investor, this process is the equivalent of “token

burning” and results in an irreversible loss of crypto. You read that right - the
investor lost half a million dollars!!
How much of this did you understand?
If you said “Everything!”, you are good to go and I wish you the best on your
Crypto journey.
If not, please don’t start investing just yet. Wait for a few more lessons :-)
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7. Crypto Tax
This is an India-specific post. Please skip if it doesn’t apply to you.
Many of you have asked me these questions on Crypto Tax:
1.  How will Crypto profits be taxed?

2.  Will free Cryptos from airdrops, L&E, P2E games be taxed?
3.  Will I be taxed even if I don’t sell my Crypto?
4.  How will Crypto mining be taxed?
5.  How will Crypto staking and lending be taxed?
6.  Will Crypto exchanges deduct TDS?
7.  Will salaries paid in Crypto be taxed?
8.  Do I have to pay tax even if I use a DEX?
9.  Do I have to pay tax even if I use a foreign Crypto exchange?
10.  Do I have to pay tax even if I use a P2P marketplace?
11.  What if I gift crypto to a friend?
I have answered these questions in my podcast:

https://omny.fm/shows/cut-the-cryp/how-will-your-crypto-be-taxed
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8. Crypto Metrics
Crypto Metrics are numbers that investors use to decide whether to buy,
sell or hold a crypto.
There are 9,000+ cryptos being actively traded across 400+ exchanges!
This makes it hard to decide whether a cryptocurrency is worth investing in.
If you are a serious investor, you must know about the important crypto
metrics.
The Basic Crypto Metrics are:
1.  Supply metrics (Circulating, Maximum & Total)

2.  Capitalization metrics (Market Capitalization & Fully Diluted Market
Capitalization)
3.  Volume
4.  Price metrics (OHLC, ATH, ATL)
5.  Holders' Statistics
6.  Return on Investment
7.  Total Value Locked (TVL)
1. Supply Metrics
Circulating Supply is the number of coins/tokens that are circulating in the

market and are in public hands. Usually, the lower this number, the higher
the prices are likely to be.
Examples: The circulating supply of Bitcoin (BTC) increases approx every

10 minutes as new bitcoins are generated with every block that is mined.
The crypto with one of the highest circulating supplies is SHIBA INU with
394,796,000,000,000 SHIB.
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Maximum supply is the maximum number of coins/tokens that will ever
exist in the lifetime of a Crypto.
Examples: The maximum supply of Bitcoin (BTC) is 21 million while that of

Ether (ETH) is unlimited!
Total supply is the number of coins/tokens that have been already created,
minus coins/tokens that have been ‘burned’.
Examples: In the case of Bitcoin (BTC), the circulating supply is equal to the
total supply. Binance Coin (BNB) regularly ‘burns’ coins and this helps
maintain its price.
2. Capitalization metrics
Market Capitalization is the total market value of a Crypto's circulating

supply.
Market Capitalization = Circulating Supply x Current Price
Historically, Bitcoin (BTC) has always had the highest market capitalization
and Ethereum the second highest. If this were reversed, it would be called
the Flippening.
Fully Diluted Market Capitalization (FDMC) is the market capitalization if

the maximum supply was in circulation.
FDMC = Price x Max Supply
If the maximum supply is unknown or unlimited, like in ETH, then:
FDMC = Price x Total Supply
If the maximum supply and total supply are both unlimited, then we can't
calculate the FDMC.
3. Volume
Volume measures how much of a crypto was traded in the last 24 hours.
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4. Price Metrics
Open-High-Low-Close prices (OHLC) means the open, high, low, and

closing prices for a crypto for a particular time period - an hour, a day, or
even a year.
All-time-high (ATH) is the highest price a crypto has ever reached.
All-time-low (ATL) is the lowest price a crypto has ever reached.
You should also check out the high & low prices over the last 24 hours, 7
days, 30 days, 90 days, and 52 weeks.
5. Holders' Statistics
You've probably heard of the term "whales". They are addresses that own
more than 1% of the circulating supply of a crypto.
Some of the important metrics related to holders of crypto are:
1. The total number of unique addresses that hold assets in the network
2. Addresses that have been active over the last 24 hours and 7 days
3. Transactions carried out by the top addresses by balance
6. Return on Investment
Return on Investment (ROI) measures the amount of return on a crypto

investment, relative to its cost.
ROI = Profit / Cost
7. Total value locked (TVL)
Total value locked (TVL) represents the total of all assets deposited in a
Decentralised Finance protocol earning rewards, interest, new coins /
tokens, fixed income, etc.
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https://coinmarketcap.com

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https://defillama.com
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https://www.futuremoneywallet.com

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https://messari.io

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9. The myth of Crypto
decentralization
A lot of people swear by the importance of decentralization in the

blockchain & Crypto world. But how decentralized is Crypto?
As of mid-February 2022, there are over 17,500 cryptos and the total
market capitalization of Cryptos is around $1.9 trillion. Of this, the share of
the top 5 cryptos by market capitalization is:
•  Bitcoin (BTC): 41.8%

•  Ethereum (ETH): 18.8%
•  Tether (USDT): 4.1%
•  BNB (BNB): 3.6%
•  USD Coin (USDC): 2.8%
The top 5 cryptos account for more than 71% of the entire crypto market!
Now, let's see how decentralized the top 5 Cryptos are.
1. Bitcoin
Bitcoin transactions are "confirmed" by miners using a process called ‘proof

of work’.
Bitcoin's ‘hash rate’ is the amount of computing and processing power in

the network. If malicious miners get 51% of the hashing power, they could
cause devastating problems such as:
•  double-spending coins, and

•  preventing certain transactions from being verified.
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According to statistics from btc.com, over the last 1 year, this is the hash
rate share of the top 5 mining pools:
•  AntPool: 15.16%
•  F2Pool: 14.86%
•  Poolin: 11.81%
•  ViaBTC: 11.10%
•  Binance Pool: 10.18%
The top 5 mining pools control 63.11% of the hash rate!
2. Ethereum
Ethereum also runs on proof-of-work and the top 2 mining pools control
over 51% of Ethereum's hash rate! Source: https://www.avax.network
3. Tether (USDT)
Tether (USDT) is a 100% centralized fiat-backed stablecoin issued by a

Hong Kong-based company called Tether. The company keeps commercial
paper and other reserves that are equal in USD value to the number of
USDT in circulation.
4. BNB (BNB)
BNB is the native token of the popular Binance Smart Chain which chooses
the top 21 highest-stake nodes as validators. The minimum amount for self-
delegation is 10,000 BNB. That's over $4 million! This makes the Chain
highly centralized. (Source: https://docs.binance.org/faq/bsc/val.html)
5. USD Coin (USDC)
USD Coin (USDC) is a 100% centralized fiat-backed stablecoin issued by

the Centre Consortium which has 2 founding members - peer-to-peer
payment services company Circle, and the Coinbase cryptocurrency
exchange.
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10. Currency Cryptos
Currency Cryptos are those that can be used to buy and sell stuff (physical
or virtual) or which can quickly be converted to ‘cash’. These cryptos
usually have a higher Volume / Market Capitalization Ratio ratio (VMR) as
compared to other Cryptos.
According to me, the most important Currency Cryptos for 2022, in

alphabetical order, are:
1.  Bitcoin (BTC)

2.  Bitcoin Cash (BCH)
3.  Dash (DASH)
4.  Litecoin (LTC)
5.  Monero (XMR)
6.  ZCash (ZEC)
Note: Fiat-pegged stablecoins, e.g. Tether (USDT), are also used as

currencies but have been excluded from this list.
You can learn more about these Cryptos in Part B of this Playbook.
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11. DAO Cryptos
A Decentralized Autonomous Organization (DAO) is like ‘an Internet-based

community with a shared bank account’. You can think of it as a mutual fund
where instead of a central manager, the participants decide on the
investment and other decisions.
DAOs exist only on a blockchain and their rules are coded in smart
contracts. Since DAOs run on public blockchains, anyone can check and
verify all the financial transactions made by the DAO. Members of a DAO
don't have to trust each other - they have to trust the code.
My favorite DAOs are:

1.  Aave
2.  Compound
3.  Decred
4.  Maker
5.  Uniswap
The DAO hack
DAOs did not start off too well. The first-ever DAO was "hacked" and
ultimately led to the original Ethereum network splitting into two.
Surprised? Let's go back to 2016.
The first DAO raised about $150 million worth of ether (ETH) through a
token sale. But a hacker exploited a bug in the smart contract and siphoned
out all the money!
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Now, logically nothing should have been done about this. Blockchains are
‘immutable’ and ‘censorship-resistant’, right? But a ‘hard fork’ was
implemented. This rolled back Ethereum's history to before the hack.
This reallocated the hacked ETH to a different smart contract and allowed
investors to withdraw their funds. The 'purists' hated this and that's what led
to Ethereum splitting into 2 blockchains: Ethereum and Ethereum Classic.
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12. DeFi (Decentralized
Finance) Cryptos
DeFi (Decentralized Finance) is an umbrella term for financial applications
powered by blockchain technology.
The most popular DeFi Blockchains include:

1.  Ethereum,
2.  Terra,
3.  Binance Smart Chain,
4.  Avalanche, and
5.  Fantom.
Types of DeFi protocols
1.  Algo-Stables: This includes algorithmic coins & stablecoins.
2.  Bridges: These are protocols that bridge cryptos from one blockchain
network to another.
3.  Collateralized Debt Position (CDP): These are protocols that mint their
own stablecoins using collateral.
4.  Cross Chains: These are protocols that enable interoperability between
different blockchains.
5.  Derivatives: These are Smart Contracts that get their value, risk, and
basic structure from an underlying asset.
6.  Dexes: These are protocols that enable users to swap / trade cryptos
without the need for KYC.
7.  Gaming: These are protocols that have gaming components.
8.  Indexes: These are protocols that track the performance of a group of
related assets.
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9.  Insurance: These are protocols that provide monetary protection in
case an event occurs or does not occur.
10.  Launchpad: These are protocols that launch new projects and cryptos.
11.  Lending: These are protocols that enable users to borrow and lend
cryptos.
12.  Minting: These are protocols that enable the minting or creation of
Non-Fungible Tokens (NFT).
13.  Options: These are protocols that give you the right to buy or sell
crypto at a pre-decided price.
14.  Oracle: These are protocols that bring information from the outside to
the blockchain and vice versa.
15.  Payments: These are protocols that enable the payment / sending /
receiving of cryptos.
16.  Prediction Market: These are protocols that enable the wagering /
betting in future events.
17.  Privacy: These are protocols that enable the hiding of information
about crypto transactions.
18.  Reserve Currency: These are protocols that use a reserve of assets to
issue and back their native cryptos.
19.  Services: These are protocols that provide services to DeFi users.
20.  Staking: These are protocols that reward users for staking their
cryptos.
21.  Synthetics: These are protocols that create tokenized derivatives that
mimic the value of other assets.
22.  Yield Aggregators: These are protocols that aggregate yield from
multiple DeFi protocols.
23.  Yield: These are protocols that reward users for staking or providing
liquidity.
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According to me, the most important DeFi Cryptos for 2022, in alphabetical
order, are:
1.  Aave (AAVE)

2.  Balancer (BAL)
3.  PancakeSwap (CAKE)
4.  Compound (COMP)
5.  Curve DAO Token (CRV)
6.  Maker (MKR)
7.  SushiSwap (SUSHI)
8.  Uniswap (UNI)
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13. Gaming &
Metaverse cryptos
The metaverse is a ‘parallel digital universe’ where you can create your own
digital avatar and work, travel, learn, play, and party!
The best way to understand the Metaverse is by watching these movies -

Ready Player One, Avatar, and Wreck-it Ralph.
The Metaverse is actually quite an old concept. My first experience with it

was using ‘Second Life’ in the early 2000s. The band ‘Duran Duran’
performed a concert in the Second Life virtual world in 2006.
According to me, the most important Gaming & Metaverse Cryptos for
2022, in alphabetical order, are:
1.  Axie Infinity (AXS)

2.  Enjin Coin (ENJ)
3.  Gala (GALA)
4.  Decentraland (MANA)
5.  The Sandbox (SAND)
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50
14. Web 3.0 cryptos
Web 1.0 was the first generation of the World Wide Web from the early
1990s to around 2004. During this stage, most websites were static. These
websites were created by businesses and "consumed" by users like you
and me.
Web 2.0 is the current second generation of the World Wide Web. A large
amount of content is user-generated e.g. social media content, blogs, vlogs,
etc. Most of this data is controlled and monetized by large companies like
Google, and Meta (Facebook).
Web 3.0 is the latest generation of the World Wide Web and its focus is on
decentralization. Web 3.0 applications and services would increasingly be
powered by blockchains, crypto-assets (fungible and non-fungible), artificial
intelligence, and metaverses.
Web 3.0 is expected to provide personalized content and also enable

people to control their own data.
The top Web 3.0 cryptos
According to me, the most important Web 3.0 Cryptos for 2022, in
alphabetical order, are:
1. Arweave (AR)
2. Audius (AUDIO)
3. Basic Attention Token (BAT)
4. Chainlink (LINK)
5. Filecoin (FIL)
6. Helium (HNT)
7. Livepeer (LPT)
8. Siacoin (SC)
9. The Graph (GRT)
10. Theta (THETA)
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15. Decentralized
Exchanges (DEXs)
There are 2 easy ways to trade crypto - Centralized Exchanges (CEX) and
Decentralized Exchanges (DEX).
Centralized Exchanges (CEX)
A CEX requires users to complete a KYC process. It authenticates you

using your username, password, and email / SMS OTP (one time
password). Once you are logged into your account, you can transfer fiat
(rupees, dollars, etc.) to your account and use it to buy crypto. Similarly, you
can sell the crypto and get the fiat into your bank account.
Remember that in a CEX, the crypto is not in your ‘wallet’. It’s in the
exchange’s wallet.
Decentralized Exchanges (DEX)
A DEX, on the other hand, doesn’t require KYC completion. You can
connect using your wallet (e.g. Metamask) and swap / trade crypto. The
crypto remains in your wallet.
According to me, the most important DEXs, in alphabetical order, are:

1.  Balancer (BAL)
2.  Curve (CRV)
3.  PancakeSwap (CAKE)
4.  SushiSwap (SUSHI)
5.  Uniswap (UNI)
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16. Non-Fungible
Tokens (NFTs)
Consider the balance in your mobile wallet (say Rs. 10,000). Is there any
difference between each of these rupees? No, there isn’t. So we can say
that this digital money is “fungible” - every rupee is exactly the same as
another rupee.
Is every 500-rupee note identical in value? Most people would say yes. But
it’s not! An older 500-rupee note is worth zero – remember demonetization?
So, we can say that physical currency notes are “non-fungible”.
To understand what a non-fungible token (NFT) is, let’s take an example.

Sanya is an artist who creates a bunch of manga ink on paper drawings.
She sells them online as well as at a physical art gallery. But she can sell
each drawing only once because, hey, it’s a physical drawing.
She can also create multiple reprints and sell them. Each reprint is identical.
So if there are very few official reprints, the price can be high. If there are
many reprints the price will be very low. That’s the law of scarcity at work.
We are usually ready to pay more for things that are rare.
But how would a buyer know how many reprints are in existence?
That’s where NFTs come in. Sanya can release digital copies of her
drawings on the blockchain in the form of non-fungible cryptocurrencies.
Because of the blockchain’s inherent transparency, any buyer can see how
many digital copies are actually in circulation. And anyone can see who
owns how many digital copies.
Wait, there’s more. When you “buy” a digital version of a manga from an
artist you only get the right to use it for personal viewing. That’s because
the artist holds the copyright over the manga. But in an NFT, the artist can
grant you special licenses e.g. the right to print the manga on t-shirts and
make money by selling those t-shirts. Now, isn’t that cool?
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Non-Fungible Tokens (NFTs) started off with CryptoKitties - a game
centered around breedable, collectible, virtual cats. According to the official
project website, "Each cat is one-of-a-kind and 100% owned by you; it
cannot be replicated, taken away, or destroyed".
NFTs can be divided into these 5 categories:
Category 1: Digital art such as images, videos, and GIFs.
Category 2: Collectibles such as NFTs Stamps from Austria, Switzerland

and Gibralter.
Category 3: In-game / Metaverse assets such as avatars, skins, weapons,

and virtual real estate.
Category 4: NFT Domains such as .crypto, .nft, .dao
Category 5: Wrapped NFTs backed by assets like IP licenses, private

equity, unlisted debt, real estate.
Category 1: Digital art
A number of NFTs in Category 1 are plagiarized works, fake collections,

spam, and frauds. And then there are rug-pulls. And wash trading - illegally
inflated trade volumes by constant buying & selling within a group.
OpenSea, the most popular NFT marketplace has a tool for free minting of
NFTs. The platform has admitted that 80% of these NFTs are plagiarized
works, fake collections, and spam.
Another platform called DeviantArt has issued 80,000 fraud alerts in a few
months.
Another platform called LooksRare is plagued with wash trading. That's

when people illegally inflate trade volume and value by buying & selling
NFTs within a group.
Do you remember the $69 million Beeple NFT that started off the NFT hype
cycle? The buyer, MetaKovan is actually a business partner of Beeple.
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A research study recently analyzed 6.1 million trades of 4.7 million NFTs
since 2017. They found that 10% of traders accounted for 90% of all NFT
transactions. This group trades 97% of all NFTs at least once.
Many NFT projects turn out to be multi-million dollar "rug pulls". That's when
anonymous founders vanish with the investors' money. Examples include
the Evolved Apes NFT project, the Big Daddy Ape Club, and Blockverse.
Then there are ridiculous projects that promise to give you ownership of a
color. You read that right. Ownership of a color. They even promise you
royalties every time someone uses your color.
I think Digital Art NFTs are heading for a massive crash in 2022.
Category 2: Collectibles
Austria was the first country to offer "Crypto stamps" - physical postage
stamps that have a "digital twin" or NFT on the blockchain. The stamp
comes with an NFC chip that contains a cryptographic key. The chip can be
read with a NFC-enabled smartphone.
Other countries working on such collectibles are Switzerland and Gibralter.
I am very bullish on this category of NFTs.
Category 3: In-game / Metaverse assets
This category relates to in-game assets, metaverse assets such as avatars,

skins, weapons, and virtual real estate.. Many top brands such as Gucci
and Nike, are also issuing NFTs in this category.
Some of the best Crypto projects in this category are - Axie Infinity (AXS),
Decentraland (MANA), Enjin Coin (ENJ), Gala (GALA), and The Sandbox
(SAND). You can learn more about them in my article on the Top Gaming
and Metaverse Cryptos for 2022.
I am bullish on this category of NFTs.
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Category 4: NFT Domains
Blockchain or NFT domains look like regular domains but are very different.
They are smart contracts written on a public blockchain. The biggest
advantage is the fact that they are ‘owned’ and not ‘rented’.
What I like best about NFT domains is that there is no renewal fees.
Regular domains have to be renewed every year. Blockchain domains can
be purchased with a one-time registration fee and you never have to pay for
renewals again.
The disadvantage is that they cannot be used directly in a regular browser.

This causes a huge level of friction and that is why they are not very
popular as of now.
These domains can be used as universal usernames across apps and

websites, website URLs, and payment address for wallets.
Some of the popular domains include .crypto, .coin, .bitcoin, .nft, and .dao
I am bullish on this category of NFTs.
Category 5: Wrapped NFTs
Wrapped NFTs are also called Wrapped Assets and are blockchain tokens
pegged to or collateralized by assets such as coffee, gold, fiat currency,
debt instruments, real estate, etc.
They are called ‘wrapped’ assets or tokens because the original asset is put
in a ‘wrapper’ or ‘digital vault’ that enables the wrapped version to be traded
on a blockchain.
I am very bullish on this category of NFTs.
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17. How to value
Cryptos
Valuation of Cryptos is my absolute favorite area of study and research.
There are 11 types of Crypto Assets and you must not use the same
valuation method for all of them.
To understand the subjective and mathematical models that I use, watch

this 23-minute video that covers:
•  The 11 types of Crypto Assets

•  Valuing Ready Money Cryptos
•  Valuing Hush / Privacy Coins
•  Valuing Application / Security / Governance Cryptos
•  Valuing Public Blockchain natives
https://youtu.be/er0g6e29mew?t=20

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Valuation of DeFi Blockchains
Let’s dive a little deeper into valuation of DeFi Blockchains.
I think that the most important metric for a DeFi Blockchain is Total Value
Locked (TVL). This is the total amount of assets ‘locked’ or secured in a
DeFi blockchain.
To get the Mcap / TVL Ratio (MTR), we start with the Circulating Supply of
the native token of the Blockchain e.g. ETH in the case of the Ethereum
Mainnet. The Circulating Supply is the number of coins/tokens in public
hands.
Multiplying the Circulating Supply with the Current Price gives us the Market
Capitalization (Mcap).
Mcap / TVL Ratio (MTR) is calculated by dividing the Mcap by the TVL.
I consider 3 to be the ideal MTR for a DeFi blockchain. If a

blockchain’s MTR is above 3, it is overvalued and if it is below 3, it is
undervalued.
Valuing the native token of a DeFi Blockchain is a 2-step process.
Step 1: Multiply the TVL of the Blockchain by 3. This is the ideal market
capitalization of the blockchain.
Step 2: Divide the market capitalization by the circulating supply of the

native token of the blockchain. This is the ideal price.
Let’s take an example.
As of today (15 February 2022), the TVL of the Ethereum Mainnet is $

124.84 billion. So its ideal Mcap would be
= $124.84 billion x 3 = $ 374.52 billion
The circulating supply of ETH is 119,586,846 ETH. So the ideal price of

ETH would be
= 374.52 billion / 119,586,846
= $ 3131.78
That means at the current price of $3,041.60, ETH is slightly undervalued.
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To Do
Here’s an assignment for you. Calculate the ideal price for:
•  Terra (LUNA),
•  Binance Smart Chain (BNB), and
•  Avalanche (AVAX).
You can get the latest TVL data from https://defillama.com/chains and the
other metrics from https://coinmarketcap.com
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Part B
FUTURE 50 Cryptos
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1. Aave (AAVE)
Aave (AAVE) is 2 things - a decentralized non-custodial liquidity market

protocol as well as a crypto token.
As a protocol, Aave enables the lending and borrowing of crypto.
Lenders deposit funds in a smart contract. These funds can be withdrawn

on-demand. These funds can also be exported as aTokens which can be
moved and traded as an Ethereum token.
Borrowers can borrow in 2 ways:

•  in an overcollateralized manner, or
•  in an undercollateralized manner using ‘flash loans’.
Flash loans allow anyone to borrow any amount of assets without the need
to provide any collateral. But the loan and interest must be repaid within
one ‘block transaction’. The Aave Protocol is very popular since it is open
source and enables anyone to interact with it using:
•  a user interface client,
•  Application Programming Interface (API), and
•  directly with Ethereum smart contracts.
One challenge is that interacting with Aave requires Ethereum transaction

fees to be paid.
As a token, AAVE gives holders discounted fees and also serves as a

governance token by giving holders a vote in the protocol's development.
AAVE can also be staked.
For updated information on Aave (AAVE), see:

https://www.futuremoneywallet.com/crypto_details.php?symbol=AAVE
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2. Algorand (ALGO)
Algorand is a new-gen blockchain that is bridging the decentralized and

centralized world of finance.
Algorand Standard Assets run on the blockchain's ‘Layer-1’ and include

fungible, non-fungible, restricted fungible, and restricted non-fungible
assets.
Here's what I like the best about Algorand Standard Assets:
1.  Role-based asset controls are supported for business, compliance, and
regulatory requirements.
2.  Asset accounts can be ‘quarantined’ for investigations.
3.  ‘Forced’ asset transfers can be done for legal compliance.
4.  Permissions can be configured so that only ‘whitelisted’ addresses can
transact.
5.  Off-chain asset documentation can be included in the on-chain asset
definition.
6.  Users can ‘opt-in’ to accept new assets.
Another feature I like in Algorand is ‘Rekeying in Layer-1’, which enables a

user to change their private key without changing the public address.
Wallets
Algorand's Official Wallet enables holders to earn rewards simply by holding
ALGOs.
For updated information on Algorand (ALGO), see:

https://www.futuremoneywallet.com/crypto_details.php?symbol=ALGO
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3. Arweave (AR)
Arweave is "a collectively owned hard drive that never forgets. It allows the
permanent storage of data with a single upfront fee.
Arweave is a decentralized storage network for the indefinite storage of

data. At its core is "permaweb" - a "permanent, decentralized web with
applications and platforms like UI hosting, database writes & queries, and
smart contracts.
Miners are paid in Arweave's native cryptocurrency, AR, to indefinitely store

information.
Wallets
Arweave Web Extension Wallet is the official wallet.
For updated information on Arweave (AR), see:

https://www.futuremoneywallet.com/crypto_details.php?symbol=AR
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4. Audius (AUDIO)
Audius is a decentralized music streaming protocol that aims to give

"everyone the freedom to distribute, monetize, and stream any audio
content". Audius is built on both Ethereum and Solana.
$AUDIO is the native token that enables network security, exclusive feature
access, and community-owned governance.
$AUDIO can be staked to run discovery or content nodes. Artists can also
stake $AUDIO to unlock artist tokens and badges, and to "receive voting
power from fans who want to share in their success".
Wallets
FreeWallet is a popular wallet for Audius (AUDIO).
For updated information on Audius (AUDIO), see:

https://www.futuremoneywallet.com/crypto_details.php?symbol=AUDIO
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5. Avalanche (AVAX)
Avalanche is a popular Decentralised Finance (DeFi) blockchain.
What I like the most about Avalanche is that it lets us launch customized
private & public blockchains.
Avalanche, with a transactional throughput of more than 4500 tps, performs

phenomenally faster than:
•  Bitcoin (7 tps),
•  Ethereum (14 tps), and
•  Polkadot (1500 tps).
In terms of transactional finality, Avalanche (less than 2 seconds) leads as

compared to:
•  Bitcoin (60 mins),
•  Ethereum (6 min), and
•  Polkadot (60 seconds).
AVAX is Avalanche's native token and it can be used for staking, paying
fees, and providing a unit of account between the multiple subnetworks
created on Avalanche.
Wallets
The officially recommended wallets are Avalanche Wallet, Ledger, Frontier,
and D'Cent.
For updated information on Avalanche (AVAX), see:

https://www.futuremoneywallet.com/crypto_details.php?symbol=AVAX
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6. Axie Infinity (AXS)
Axie Infinity is a blockchain-based trading and battling game. Axies are

‘digital pets’ that can be raised, battled, and traded.
The Axie ecosystem has multiple cryptos including:

•  Axies which are NFTs
•  Smooth Love Potions (SLP) which are fungible tokens
•  Axie Infinity Shards (AXS) which are fungible tokens
Each Axie is a unique ERC-721 non-fungible token (NFT) and:

•  Has 4 stats: Health, Morale, Skill, and Speed.
•  Comes in a class: 6 normal classes (Aquatic, Beast, Bird, Bug, Plant, or
Reptile) or 3 secret classes (Dawn, Dusk, or Mech).
•  Comprises 6 body parts: back, ears, eyes, horns, mouth, and tail.
Axies can also be bred (at a cost) to create rare and powerful combinations.
Each body part has 3 genes associated with it and has different chances of
being passed down to offspring.
Axie Infinity Shards (AXS) are ERC20 governance tokens in the Axie
universe. AXS holders can claim rewards by staking tokens, playing the
game, and participating in governance. Players can also earn AXS by
playing games and generating content.
Smooth Love Potions (SLP) are ERC20 tokens that can be earned by
playing and can be used to breed new Axies.
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Wallet
Metamask is one of the best wallets for Axie Infinity.
For updated information on Axie Infinity (AXS), see:

https://www.futuremoneywallet.com/crypto_details.php?symbol=AXS
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7. Balancer (BAL)
Balancer (BAL) is a non-custodial automated portfolio manager and trading

platform.
In a conventional index fund, the investor pays fees to a portfolio manager

for rebalancing the portfolio.
In Balancer, the investor collects fees from traders who rebalance their
portfolio by following arbitrage opportunities.
For updated information on Balancer (BAL), see:

https://www.futuremoneywallet.com/crypto_details.php?symbol=BAL
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8. Basic Attention Token
(BAT)
Basic Attention Token (BAT) is disrupting the $330 billion digital advertising
industry.
Here's how the BAT ecosystem works:
•  Users can earn BAT for viewing ads while maintaining privacy.
•  Content creators earn ad revenue, user contributions, and tips.
•  Advertisers get a better return on investment and know their ads'
effectiveness without violating the privacy of users.
Brave Browser is at the heart of the BAT ecosystem. Brave blocks ads and
trackers. This makes your browsing 3 times faster and very private.
Brave Wallet is the first crypto wallet that is built directly into a browser. This
is unlike Metamask which is a browser extension. Because of this, Brave
wallet is less vulnerable to faked versions and phishing.
Wallet
Brave Wallet is one of the best wallets for BAT.
For updated information on Basic Attention Token (BAT), see:

https://www.futuremoneywallet.com/crypto_details.php?symbol=BAT
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9. Binance Coin (BNB)
The Binance Ecosystem
Binance started off as a crypto exchange in 2017. Today, it is one of the

biggest players in the crypto industry.
The Binance ecosystem includes:

•  multiple crypto exchanges,
•  multiple cryptos - Binance Coin (BNB), Binance USD (BUSD), Bitcoin
BEP2 (BTCB)
•  Trust Wallet and its TWT token,
•  Token Launchpad, and more.
•  Binance also operates some cryptos - BNB and BUSD.
Binance Coin (BNB) was issued as part of Binance's initial coin offering
(ICO). Its first use case was discounted trading fees on the Binance
exchange. Did you know that 90% of Binance employees earn a portion of
their income in BNB?
BUSD is a US dollar-backed stablecoin issued jointly by Binance and

Paxos. BUSD is one of the few stablecoins approved by the New York State
Department of Financial Services (NYDFS).
I am a fan of Trust Wallet, a popular mobile wallet that supports 53

blockchains and more than a million digital assets. It was acquired by
Binance in 2018.
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Binance Blockchains
Binance Chain, the first blockchain from Binance, is optimized for fast
decentralized trading but lacks smart contracts and strong programmability.
That's why Binance Smart Chain (BSC) was created. It runs parallel to the
original Binance Chain, has smart contract functionality, and is compatible
with the Ethereum Virtual Machine (EVM).
BSC is an independent blockchain and is not a layer two or off-chain

scalability solution. BSC is a hard fork of the Go Ethereum (Geth) protocol,
Binance Smart Chain has a block time of around 3 seconds. The native
token of both blockchains is BNB.
Validators stake BNB and can receive transaction fees. Unlike Bitcoin, there
is no block reward by way of newly minted BNB. This is because BNB is not
inflationary. Instead, the supply of BNB decreases over time, because the
Binance team regularly "burns" coins.
BSC has 11 validators on the testnest and 21 validators on the mainnet.

These Validators are selected every 24 hours and must stake a minimum of
10,000 BNB.
Interestingly, BEP-2 and BEP-8 tokens from Binance Chain can be

swapped for BEP-20 tokens on BSC. This can be easily done using the
Binance Chain Wallet.
What I hate about Binance
Binance has 3 crypto exchanges:

•  Binance.com - the original and largest crypto exchange by volume.
•  Binance.us - which was created after Binance was banned in the US in
2019 on regulatory grounds.
•  Binance DEX - a decentralized exchange built on Binance Chain.
Of late, I have come to hate the Binance.com crypto exchange due to its
glitches and outages.
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In fact, a group of derivative traders is suing Binance for trading losses
suffered due to outages of the platform. This case could set a global
precedent on the liability of exchanges.
What I fear about Binance
Binance is facing legal troubles across the world - Canada, Cayman

Islands, Italy, Japan, Malaysia, Singapore, South Africa, Thailand, the UK,
and the USA.
It's not just problems with regulators. Hundreds of investors are expected to
take part in proceedings against Binance, seeking damages for money they
lost during a major outage.
Binance says it has no official headquarters. That has made it difficult for
investors to figure out how, and where, to take the company to court. Swiss
private equity firm Liti Capital has promised to provide a minimum of $5
million in funding for the case.
Binance is probably the most important part of the crypto ecosystem and its
legal problems could have a massive negative impact on crypto prices.
For updated information on Binance Coin (BNB), see:

https://www.futuremoneywallet.com/crypto_details.php?symbol=BNB
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10. Bitcoin (BTC)
You can love Bitcoin or you can hate Bitcoin, but you can't ignore Bitcoin.
Bitcoin is the world's first cryptocurrency and has always been the largest
by market capitalization.
1. Bitcoin payments are maturing
Bitcoin is slow. Its transactional throughput is 7 transactions / second and

its transactional finality is 60 minutes! But you can still use Bitcoin to pay for
a burger in El Salvador! Confused?
That's the magic of the Lightning Network which uses its own native smart-
contract scripting language along with real Bitcoin transactions to enable
secure, high volume, and high-speed Bitcoin transactions.
On 7 September 2021, El Salvador became the world’s first country to

recognize Bitcoin as a legal tender.
And in March 2022, the Swiss City of Lugano made Bitcoin 'De Facto' legal
tender. Lugano, in addition to allowing crypto for taxes, is aiming to have all
of its businesses seamlessly use crypto for everyday transactions.
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2. Smart contracts, NFT, DeFi, and DApps on Bitcoin
Many people don't know that you can run smart contracts, non-fungible
tokens (NFT), and decentralized applications (DApps) on Bitcoin!
That's the magic of:

•  Liquid Network
•  Omni Layer
•  Stacks
•  Merged mining blockchains
Liquid Network is a sidechain-based settlement network that enables

faster, more confidential Bitcoin transactions & digital assets issuance.
Omni Layer is a software layer on top of the Bitcoin blockchain for creating
& trading custom digital assets & currencies.
Stacks is an open-source blockchain that leverages Bitcoin for

decentralized apps and smart contracts. Since Stacks uses Bitcoin as a
base layer, everything that happens on Stacks is settled on the Bitcoin
Blockchain. Stacks connects directly to the Bitcoin blockchain through its
proof-of-transfer (PoX) consensus mechanism.
Merged mining (technically called auxiliary proof of work) is the process of

mining two or more blockchains at the same time. Essentially the same
proof of work can be used on multiple chains.
Bitcoin merged mining blockchains include:

•  RSK,
•  Elastos (ELA),
•  Myriad (XMY),
•  Unobtanium (UNO),
•  Syscoin (SYS),
•  Terracoin (TRC), and
•  Blast (BLAST).
RSK enables:
•  smart contracts on top of Bitcoin,
•  near-instant payments through RIF Lumino, and
•  greater scalability for Bitcoin.
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3. Crypto trading pairs
Trading pairs are cryptos that can be traded for each other on an exchange
e.g. Bitcoin / Ether (BTC/ETH). Many cryptocurrencies can only be bought
with Bitcoin. This helps maintain the importance of Bitcoin in the crypto
world.
For updated information on Bitcoin (BTC), see:

https://www.futuremoneywallet.com/crypto_details.php?symbol=BTC
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77
9 pages that disrupted money forever
The original whitepaper titled “Bitcoin: A Peer-to-Peer

Electronic Cash System” can be downloaded from:
https://bitcoin.org/bitcoin.pdf
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Bitcoin earned a lot of notoriety primarily because of its
use by members of the now shut-down Silk Road - an
illegal online marketplace that facilitated the sale of
hundreds of millions of dollars worth of drugs, guns,
stolen financial information, counterfeit documents and
more.
All Silk Road transactions were conducted exclusively in

bitcoin.
Silk Road creator Ross Ulbricht is currently serving two

life sentences in prison after being found guilty of money
laundering, computer hacking, and conspiracy to traffic
narcotics.
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The first Bitcoin real-world transaction took place on 22nd May, 2010
and involved 10,000 bitcoins being exchanged for $25 worth of pizza.
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11. Bitcoin Cash (BCH)
In July 2017, Bitcoin (BTC) miners representing more than 80% of the
Bitcoin computing power voted to incorporate the SegWit2x (segregated
witness) technology to improve Bitcoin.
Many miners and developers, who did not want SegWit2x to be introduced,
initiated a hard fork and created a new currency - Bitcoin Cash (BCH).
BCH has its own blockchain and processes transactions faster and cheaper
than BTC.
For updated information on Bitcoin Cash (BCH), see:

https://www.futuremoneywallet.com/crypto_details.php?symbol=BCH
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12. Cardano (ADA)
Cardano is a blockchain network which is being developed into a

decentralized application (DApp) development platform with a multi-asset
ledger and verifiable smart contracts. Cardano hopes to become the
platform of choice for large-scale enterprise use.
ADA is the native token of Cardano. It can be ‘staked’ and in the future will
also be usable for services on Cardano.
There are 3 organizations behind Cardano - IOHK develops the technology,

the Cardano Foundation supervises development and promotions and
Emurgo drives commercial adoption.
Cardano's full launch consists of 5 phases:
1.  Byron (Sep 2017): mainnet launch of the Cardano blockchain

2.  Shelley (Jul 2020): Ouroboros Proof-of-Stake (PoS) protocol went live
3.  Goguen (2021): smart contracts and native token issuance features to
go live
4.  Basho: scalability and interoperability
5.  Voltaire: voting, treasury system and governance by ADA holders
Consensus mechanism: Proof-of-Stake (PoS) consensus mechanism

called Ouroboros.
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Wallets
Daedalus is a full-node desktop wallet for Cardano. It downloads a full copy

of the Cardano blockchain and independently validates every transaction in
its history. This provides maximum security and a trustless operation that
does not rely on third-party servers.
Yoroi is a light wallet for Cardano that does not require downloading the
blockchain. It is available as a web-based extension and a downloadable
app.
For updated information on Cardano (ADA), see:

https://www.futuremoneywallet.com/crypto_details.php?symbol=ADA
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13. Celo (CELO)
Celo is a proof-of-stake mobile-first blockchain that "makes financial dApps

and crypto payments accessible to anyone with a mobile phone".
It has an average block time of 5 seconds and is Ethereum Virtual Machine

(EVM) compatible. Celo uses mobile phone number mapping to public
keys. Celo transactions are fast & light because the block headers are
optimized for fast mobile phone synchronization.
Celo has two native tokens CELO and CUSD.
CELO is a "utility coin" that enables users to:

•  participate in the Proof-of-Stake consensus
•  pay for on-chain transactions, and
•  vote on governance decisions.
Celo Dollar (CUSD) is a US-dollar pegged stablecoin.
The network supports the development of smart contracts and

decentralized applications. Its first application, Celo Wallet, intends to be a
social-payments system centered around mobile phones.
Wallet
Valora is a mobile wallet that supports the Celo Identity Protocol. This maps
hashes of phones numbers to public keys and makes it easy for anyone
with a mobile phone to send and receive crypto.
For updated information on Celo (CELO), see:

https://www.futuremoneywallet.com/crypto_details.php?symbol=CELO
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14. Chainlink (LINK)
How can a smart contract get data from the outside world? That's the
problem that Oracles solve. They act as middleware between smart
contracts and external sources of data.
Software Oracles handle data that originates from online sources e.g.
temperature, prices of commodities and goods, flight delays. Hardware
Oracles get data from the physical world (e.g. from IoT devices) and are
popular in the supply chain industry.
Inbound Oracles provide data from the external world to the blockchain
while Outbound Oracles enable smart contracts to send data to the
outside world.
Consensus-based Oracles get their data from human consensus and

prediction markets e.g. Augur, Gnosis, etc.
Chainlink is a decentralized network of independent oracle node operators.
It provides:
•  price feeds of financial market data,

•  verifiable randomness that is needed for on-chain gaming,
•  proof of reserve for asset-backed cryptos such as stablecoins.
Chainlink is NOT a blockchain.
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Each Chainlink oracle network comprises multiple independent oracle
nodes. These nodes fetch data from multiple independent data providers.
This data is then aggregated into a single data point and delivered "on-
chain" for consumption by smart contracts.
LINK is the crypto token that is used for paying Chainlink node operators for
providing oracle services.
Consensus mechanism: LINK is an ERC-20 token.
Wallets
The popular wallets include Trust Wallet and Metamask.
For updated information on Chainlink (LINK), see:

https://www.futuremoneywallet.com/crypto_details.php?symbol=LINK
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15. Chiliz (CHZ)
Socios is a "sports fan engagement platform" that enables sports & esports
fans to "crowd-manage" their favorite teams. Chiliz (CHZ) is the
cryptocurrency that powers the Socios platform.
Sports fans can buy "fan tokens" from teams like FC Barcelona, Juventus,
Paris Saint-Germain, AS Roma, Galatasaray, Atlético de Madrid, OG, CAI &
UFC. Fan tokens are minted on the Socios sidechain which uses a proof-of-
authority consensus mechanism.
CHZ is available on Ethereum, Binance Smart Chain, and Tron.
Wallets
The officially recommended wallets are ZenGo and Trust Wallet.
For updated information on Chiliz (CHZ), see:

https://www.futuremoneywallet.com/crypto_details.php?symbol=CHZ
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16. Compound (COMP)
Compound (COMP) enables users to deposit crypto into pools and earn
interest. Borrowers take secured loans from Compound pools by depositing
collateral. If this collateral falls below a threshold, the loan is automatically
liquidated.
The protocol distributes 2,312 COMP daily as rewards to active lenders and
borrowers. In essence, users tend to accrue COMP tokens as they
participate in the lending and borrowing economy of the Compound
ecosystem.
Anyone can autonomously create proposals by locking 100 COMP in an

address.
The proposal can relate to changes in:
•  The assets' collateral factor

•  Interest rate models
•  Addition or removal of markets
•  Other parameters used by the Compound protocol
A proposal is considered for voting if the proposer’s address is delegated

65,000 COMP. After a 3-day voting process, proposals with at least 400,000
positive votes are queued for 2 days before being implemented.
For updated information on Compound (COMP), see:

https://www.futuremoneywallet.com/crypto_details.php?symbol=COMP
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17. Curve DAO Token
(CRV)
Curve (CRV) is a decentralized exchange liquidity pool on Ethereum. It is

specially designed for:
•  extremely efficient, low slippage stablecoin trading, and
•  low risk, fee income for liquidity providers.
Slippage is the difference between the expected price of a trade and the
price at which the trade is executed.
The fees and other parameters are decided by the Curve Decentralised
Autonomous Organization (DAO). The fee on all the pools is 0.04%. Half of
the fee goes to the liquidity providers and the other half to the members of
the DAO.
For updated information on Curve DAO Token (CRV), see:

https://www.futuremoneywallet.com/crypto_details.php?symbol=CRV
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18. Dash (DASH)
Dash (digital cash) is one of the earliest cryptocurrencies (born in 2014) and
is a fork of Litecoin (LTC). It was created to be an "improved version of
Bitcoin" by providing stronger privacy and faster transactions.
Some of the unique features of Dash are:
•  Masternodes - these improve the availability & efficiency of the network.

They also handle governance, secure storage of user data, and instant
& private transactions.
•  InstantSend - which enables instant payments.
•  ChainLocks - which make the blockchain instantly immutable.
•  PrivateSend - which enables additional optional privacy for transactions.
For updated information on Dash (DASH), see:

https://www.futuremoneywallet.com/crypto_details.php?symbol=DASH
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19. Decentraland
(MANA)
Decentraland is an Ethereum-based virtual world. It uses two tokens, LAND

and MANA:
•  LAND tokens are non-fungible tokens that represent individual land

parcels.
•  MANA tokens are fungible ERC20 tokens. MANA tokens can be used to
acquire LAND and also used for the purchase of in-game goods and
services.
The Decentraland DAO owns the most important smart contracts and
assets of Decentraland. This includes the LAND Contract, the Estates
Contract, Wearables, Content Servers, and the Marketplace. The DAO also
owns a substantial chunk of MANA.
Wallet
Metamask is one of the best wallets for Decentraland.
For updated information on Decentraland (MANA), see:

https://www.futuremoneywallet.com/crypto_details.php?symbol=MANA
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20. Decred (DCR)
Decred (DCR) is the governance token of the Decred blockchain. It also

facilitates open community interaction and sustainable funding policies.
Decred is a blockchain that uses a hybrid consensus mechanism. To vote,

users "timelock" their DCR to purchase tickets which can be used both for
on-chain and off-chain voting.
For on-chain voting, the protocol randomly selects 5 tickets to review the
latest block created by the miners. A block is finalized if at least 3 of the 5
tickets vote that the block is valid. After the voting, the DCR is unlocked and
returned along with the reward.
Off-chain voting is done on the Politeia platform. This can relate to spending
the platform’s treasury funds and changes to the constitutions and policies.
The records, proposals, and activities are periodically anchored to the
Decred blockchain.
For updated information on Decred (DCR), see:

https://www.futuremoneywallet.com/crypto_details.php?symbol=DCR
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21. Dogecoin (DOGE)
According to its official website, Dogecoin (DOGE) is "an open-source peer-

to-peer digital currency, favored by Shiba Inus worldwide". If you are not
much of a dog lover, Shiba Inu is a breed of hunting dog from Japan.
Dogecoin is often described as a "playful" cryptocurrency that uses the

Shiba Inu internet meme as its mascot.
DOGE has an interesting history. In 2013, Jackson Palmer, an Adobe

Australia employee, tweeted that he is "investing" in an imaginary crypto
called Dogecoin. Some of his friends actually encouraged him to create it
as a real crypto. Jackson booked the domain name dogecoin.com and
partnered with Billy Markus to make the crypto.
This was around the time when Bitcoin was being highly criticized for being
favored by criminals and dark-web platforms like Silk Road. The creators
felt that a light-hearted cryptocurrency around a meme dog would be a
good contrast to the negative image of bitcoin.
The co-founders left the project several years ago.
Dogecoin starting picking up in 2020 primarily because of TikTok

influencers. Then in 2021, it got a lot of attention from the Reddit community
and Elon Musk.
For updated information on Dogecoin (DOGE), see:

https://www.futuremoneywallet.com/crypto_details.php?symbol=DOGE
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22. Enjin Coin (ENJ)
Enjin Platform is a service that enables game developers to issue fungible

and non-fungible assets as in-game Ethereum tokens. The Enjin
marketplace enables the buying and selling of ERC-1155 assets.
Enjin Coin (ENJ) is an Ethereum-based cryptocurrency that backs the value

of next-gen fungibles and NFTs.
For updated information on Enjin Coin (ENJ), see:

https://www.futuremoneywallet.com/crypto_details.php?symbol=ENJ
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23. Ether (ETH)
Ethereum is NOT a blockchain. It's NOT a cryptocurrency either! It's

actually a protocol (a set of rules or procedures) like "HTTP" or "HTTPS".
Multiple independent blockchains run on the Ethereum protocol. When most

people talk about Ethereum, they are talking about Mainnet - the primary
public Ethereum production blockchain. This is where actual-value
transactions occur on the blockchain. The native crypto of this Ethereum is
Ether (ETH).
One of the greatest blockchain innovations is the Ethereum Virtual

Machine (EVM).
EVM is "the environment in which all 'Ethereum' accounts and smart

contracts live". Smart contracts are programs that run automatically when
some pre-defined conditions are met.
The sole purpose of the Ethereum protocol is to keep "the continuous,

uninterrupted, and immutable operation" of the EVM. At any given block,
Ethereum has only one "canonical" or unique state. EVM defines the rules
for computing new valid states from one block to another.
EVM exists as a single entity maintained by a large number of connected

computers (nodes) running an Ethereum client e.g. Geth or OpenEthereum.
A client is a software that enables nodes to read blocks on the blockchain
and smart contracts.
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The most popular Ethereum standards are ERC-20 (for fungible tokens like
stablecoins) and ERC-721 (for non-fungible tokens). Then there are
ERC-777 (improving ERC-20) and ERC-1155 (which contains both fungible
and non-fungible assets).
Gas refers to the unit that measures the amount of computational effort
required to execute specific operations on the Ethereum network.
Each Ethereum transaction requires a fee called "gas" because each

transaction consumes computational resources. The gas fee is paid in ETH
and denoted in gwei (0.000000001 ETH).
Block time is the time it takes to mine a new block (a bunch of transactions).
The average Ethereum block time is 12 to 14 seconds.
Ethereum started the concept of decentralized finance (DeFi) and today an

amazing multi-billion dollar ecosystem has evolved around it:
•  $100+ billion of fiat pegged & algorithmic stablecoins.

•  Innovative projects like Uniswap, Chainlink, Aave, Unstoppable
Domains, Basic Attention Token, Polygon, and OpenSea.
•  Asset-backed cryptos like tokenized stocks.
Consensus mechanism: Proof of work
For updated information on Ether (ETH), see:

https://www.futuremoneywallet.com/crypto_details.php?symbol=ETH
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24. Fantom (FTM)
Fantom is a network of blockchains where transactions are finalized in a

second and cost a fraction of a cent. Its main use cases include payments,
digital identity, and medical records.
Fantom uses a leaderless Proof-of-Stake consensus mechanism called

Lachesis. The Lachesis consensus can be plugged into any blockchain and
also powers Fantom’s Opera mainnet which is compatible with Ethereum.
Here are some of the things I love about Fantom:
1.  It conquers the blockchain trilemma. According to the trilemma, a

blockchain can have only 2 of these 3 features - scalability, security,
and decentralization. Fantom achieves all 3 - scalability, security, and
decentralization.
2.  Fantom has a modular architecture that makes it highly customizable.

Ethereum-based dApps can be ported easily to Fantom Opera
mainnet.
3.  In Fantom, each application has its own blockchain and its
performance and stability are not affected by traffic or congestion. In
many blockchains including Ethereum, all dApps use the same
infrastructure. This reduces scalability.
4.  Each blockchain on Fantom can have its own custom tokens,
tokenomics, and governance rules. Since all these blockchains use
Lachesis, they can interact with each other.
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Fantom's native token is FTM, which can be staked. Delegated FTM gives
investors sFTM, a synthetic asset that can be used in the Fantom
ecosystem.
While anyone can run validator nodes on Fantom, there is a huge cost to
this - you need to stake a minimum of 1 million FTM. This is what we hate
about Fantom.
Wallet
fWallet is the Fantom Official wallet. Other popular wallets include
Metamask, Ledger, Trust Wallet, and Math Wallet.
For updated information on Fantom (FTM), see:

https://www.futuremoneywallet.com/crypto_details.php?symbol=FTM
98
25. Filecoin (FIL)
Filecoin is the Airbnb for data.
It is a decentralized data storage network where excess storage can be

bought and sold. It is also the incentive & security layer for InterPlanetary
File System (IPFS). In simple words, it is a marketplace for unused storage
- in consumer hardware and data centers.
In the conventional world, cloud service providers like Amazon Web

Services (AWS) and Microsoft Azure provide centralized servers and IP
addresses for user data. In the blockchain world, Filecoin uses hash-
addressed content structures to reduce redundancy and increase efficiency.
Filecoin is integrated with Ethereum. This enables developers to access

Ethereum blockchain data and interact with Ethereum smart contracts.
Filecoin (FIL) is the native crypto of the Filecoin network. It can be used to
pay miners to store/distribute data and to retrieve information. Storage
providers guarantee a minimum service level by providing FIL as collateral.
Consensus mechanism:
Proof-of-replication (PoRep) and Proof-of-spacetime (PoSt).
PoRep enables storage miners to prove that they are physically storing a
unique copy of client data. PoSt proves that storage miners are continuing
to dedicate storage space to client data over time
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Wallets
The recommended Filecoin wallet implementations are Lotus and Glif
wallet.
For updated information on Filecoin (FIL), see:

https://www.futuremoneywallet.com/crypto_details.php?symbol=FIL
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26. Flow (FLOW)
Flow is a proof-of-stake public blockchain conceived by the team behind

CryptoKitties.
Flow's speed and throughput is a result of separating validators into 4

different roles:
•  Collector nodes that increase efficiency

•  Execution nodes that enable speed and scale
•  Verifier nodes that guarantee correctness
•  Consensus nodes that ensure decentralization
FLOW is the native token of the Flow blockchain. Its use cases are:
•  staking and payment of staking rewards

•  transaction fees
•  storage fees
For updated information on Flow (FLOW), see:

https://www.futuremoneywallet.com/crypto_details.php?symbol=FLOW
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27. FTX Token (FTT)
FTX is a popular crypto derivatives trading platform. Its native token is FTT.
An interesting feature of the exchange is leveraged tokens. These allow

traders to put leveraged positions without the need to trade on margin e.g. a
trader who wants to short Bitcoin with a 3x leverage can buy a 3x short
Bitcoin leveraged token on the FTX exchange.
These tokens are ERC20-compatible and can be listed on spot exchanges.
All FTX derivatives are stablecoin-settled and require one universal margin
wallet.
FTT holders get fee rebates and can also stake their holding.
For updated information on FTX Token (FTT), see:

https://www.futuremoneywallet.com/crypto_details.php?symbol=FTT
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28. Gala (GALA)
Gala is a gaming platform. Players can use the GALA crypto as a medium
of exchange for payment of digital goods or in-game items.
GALA can also be used to influence what games Gala should develop.
GALA can be earned by playing games and by running nodes.
There are 3 types of nodes:
1.  Proof-of-work (PoW) Founder Nodes that validate in-game

transactions and secure the network. There can be a maximum of
50,000 Founder's Nodes.
2.  Proof-of-stake (PoS) paid nodes that operate for specific games.
3.  Proof-of-Storage free nodes that allow the games to be fully hosted
on the node ecosystem.
Gala Games was founded by Eric Schiermeyer, the co-founder of Zynga, a

popular social and mobile games company.
Wallet
Metamask and Trust Wallet are popular wallets for GALA.
For updated information on Gala (GALA), see:

https://www.futuremoneywallet.com/crypto_details.php?symbol=GALA
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29. Helium (HNT)
The Helium network is a decentralized wireless network. It enables Internet

of Things (IoT) devices to wirelessly connect to the Internet and geolocate
themselves without satellite location hardware or cellular plans.
The network is powered by a blockchain whose native token is HNT. This

token incentivizes a two-sided marketplace between coverage providers
and consumers.
Hotspots are a combination of a wireless gateway and a miner and provide

network coverage over a certain radius. Hotspots also mine HNT. Helium
runs on the proof-of-coverage consensus algorithm.
For updated information on Helium (HNT), see:

https://www.futuremoneywallet.com/crypto_details.php?symbol=HNT
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30. Litecoin (LTC)
Litecoin is a fork of the Bitcoin Core source code and is also called Bitcoin's
younger brother and even Bitcoin Lite,
Litecoin (LTC) was founded by Charlie Lee - an early Bitcoin miner, a

computer scientist, and an ex-Google engineer. Litecoin started off in
October 2011 but came into the limelight in November 2013 after a sudden
huge price surge.
Some of the differences between Litecoin and Bitcoin are:
•  Faster block generation time (LTC: 2.5 mins, BTC: 10 mins).

•  Larger total coin supply (LTC: 84 million, BTC: 21 million).
•  Hash algorithm (LTC: Scrypt, BTC: SHA-256).
Litecoin also undergoes block reward halving every 840,000 blocks

(approximately 4 years).
Litecoin uses the Nakamoto Consensus in which the valid chain is the
longest chain with the most accumulated proof-of-work.
This type of consensus is "probabilistic" because there is always a

probability or chance that a new, longer chain could emerge with more
accumulated proof-of-work.
This chain would invalidate the current chain.
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Litecoin has implemented several technological upgrades including:
•  Segregated Witness (Segwit),

•  Lightning Network (for layer 2 scaling), and
•  OmniLite (for layer 2 smart contracts).
The popular meme coin Dogecoin (DOGE) is a fork of the Luckycoin

blockchain which is a fork of Litecoin. Since Litecoin and Dogecoin use the
same Scrypt-based mining system, they are used in merge-mining.
Merged mining (technically called auxiliary proof of work) is the process of

mining two or more blockchains at the same time. Essentially the same
proof of work can be used on multiple chains.
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31. Livepeer (LPT)
Livepeer is a decentralized video streaming network built on Ethereum. Its

native token is LPT.
Developers can build and scale streaming platforms and services through
API access to the Livepeer network.
Token holders help improve and secure the Livepeer network by acquiring
and staking LPT and earning ETH and LPT rewards.
Video Miners run Livepeer nodes and transcode video on their GPUs in
exchange for ETH and LPT rewards.
For updated information on Livepeer (LPT), see:

https://www.futuremoneywallet.com/crypto_details.php?symbol=LPT
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32. Maker (MKR)
MakerDAO is a decentralized organization while Maker Protocol is a

software platform, that allows users to issue and manage the DAI
stablecoin.
Maker (MKR) is the governance token of the MakerDAO and Maker

Protocol.
Maker Protocol enables over-collateralized loans by locking ETH in a smart

contract and minting Dai, a USD-pegged stablecoin. Dai can be traded and
used for payments.
MKR is minted & burnt depending on the debt status of MakerDAO. If the
financial resources of the protocol cannot cover its debt, new tokens are
minted. If there is a surplus, tokens are burned.
To vote on proposals users need to own MKR, or have it delegated to

themselves. Then you need to create a voting contract and lock MKR
tokens in it.
For updated information on Maker (MKR), see:

https://www.futuremoneywallet.com/crypto_details.php?symbol=MKR
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33. Monero (XMR)
Bitcoin transactions are considered pseudo-anonymous since the Bitcoin

blockchain is transparent - anyone who knows your address can view
details of all the transactions you have ever made. That's where privacy
coins like Monero come in.
Monero (XMR) enables private and anonymous transactions and is one of

the most widely used darknet currencies in the world. It obscures senders
and recipients. Unlike Bitcoin, XMR is completely fungible.
It is rumored that one of the co-inventors of XMR was Bitcoin-inventor

Satoshi Nakamoto.
The sender, receiver, and amount of every single Monero transaction are
hidden through the use of 3 important technologies:
•  Stealth Addresses
•  Ring Signatures
•  RingCT
Stealth Addresses are automatic one-time addresses for every

transaction.
Ring Signatures are a group of cryptographic signatures with at least 1

real participant. There is no way to tell which in the group is the real one as
they all appear valid.
RingCT (Ring Confidential Transactions) is a way to hide the amount

sent in a Monero transaction.
For updated information on Monero (XMR), see:

https://www.futuremoneywallet.com/crypto_details.php?symbol=XMR
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34. PancakeSwap
(CAKE)
PancakeSwap is a popular decentralized exchange (DEX) on the Binance

Smart Chain. It is an automated market maker (AMM). Consider it to be the
Uniswap of the Binance world.
You can use it to trade BEP-20 tokens without a centralized exchange and
while keeping control of your private key. You must have heard about
ERC-20 tokens which are fungible tokens on the Ethereum blockchain.
BEP-20 tokens are fungible tokens on the Binance blockchain.
The PancakeSwap team is anonymous, but the platform is open source and
its code has been audited by respected security firms.
The native crypto of PancakeSwap is CAKE. It can be used for:
•  Yield farming by staking supported liquidity provider (LP) tokens,

•  Staking BEP-20 tokens and earning yields on "Syrup" pools,
•  Buying PancakeSwap Lottery tickets,
•  Creating Pancake Profiles and minting NFTs,
•  Participating in IFOs (Initial Farm Offerings) and buying tokens of new
projects before their public launch,
•  Making governance proposals,
•  Voting on governance proposals,
•  Gambling by predicting whether the price of Binance Coin (BNB) will
rise or fall in a 5-minute period.
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Wallet
To use PancakeSwap, you will need to connect a Web3 wallet (e.g. Trust
Wallet or Metamask) to the PancakeSwap front-end.
For updated information on PancakeSwap (CAKE), see:

https://www.futuremoneywallet.com/crypto_details.php?symbol=CAKE
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35. Polkadot (DOT)
Polkadot is not a conventional blockchain. It is actually an ecosystem of

interconnected blockchains called parallelized chains (parachains).
Parachains are application-specific and they plug into a single base
platform called Relay Chain.
The Relay Chain does 2 main things:
•  It secures the parachains.

•  It contains Polkadot's consensus and voting logic.
Polkadot was conceptualized by Ethereum co-founder Dr. Gavin Wood. He

is also the inventor of the Solidity smart contract programming language.
Polkadot has an interesting history. It raised funds through an ICO in 2017.

A hacker "froze" 66% of these funds within a few days of the raise!
What I like best about Polkadot is that its network has a common set of
validators for securing multiple blockchains. And that transactions are
spread across multiple parallel blockchains.
DOT is the native token of the Polkadot network. DOT helps in operating
and governing the network, and in creating parachains.
GRANDPA (GHOST-based Recursive ANcestor Deriving Prefix Agreement)

and BABE (Blind Assignment for Blockchain Extension)
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Wallets
The popular wallets include Fearless Wallet, Klever, Polkawallet, and Stylo.
For updated information on Polkadot (DOT), see:

https://www.futuremoneywallet.com/crypto_details.php?symbol=DOT
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36. Polygon (MATIC)
The Ethereum blockchain is slow and costly. Polygon has a bunch of

products and services to solve this problem.
Polygon's software development kit enables the building of Ethereum

sidechains - blockchains linked to Ethereum via a two-way peg.
These sidechains are of multiple types:
•  Bundling transactions into blocks which are batched into a single

submission to the Ethereum blockchain (Plasma Chains)
•  Allowing multiple transfers to be bundled into a single transaction (zk-
Rollups)
•  Plasma Chains which also scale Ethereum smart contracts (Optimistic
Rollups)
MATIC is Polygon's native token and has the following uses:
•  pay for transaction fees in the network,

•  be the unit of payment and settlement in the Polygon ecosystem,
•  power the Polygon proof-of-stake sidechain
MATIC is an Ethereum ERC-20 token. Polygon sidechains are Proof-of-

Stake.
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Wallets
The popular wallets include Trust Wallet and Metamask.
For updated information on Polygon (MATIC), see:

https://www.futuremoneywallet.com/crypto_details.php?symbol=MATIC
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37. Siacoin (SC)
Sia is a decentralized cloud storage platform and a data storage

marketplace.
It encrypts and distributes files across a decentralized network. Users

control their private encryption keys and own their data. This is unlike
traditional cloud storage providers.
Sia's storage can cost upto 90% less than leading traditional cloud storage
providers. These charges are paid using the native token Siacoin (SC).
For updated information on Siacoin (SC), see:

https://www.futuremoneywallet.com/crypto_details.php?symbol=SC
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38. Solana (SOL)
Solana is one of the world's cheapest and fastest public blockchains.
It has a block time of 400 milliseconds and transaction fees of less than
$0.01. Solana's native token is SOL.
SOL can be:
•  staked directly on the network

•  delegated to validators in return for inflation rewards
•  used to pay for fees for sending transactions
•  used to pay for running smart contracts
The Solana Foundation is a non-profit organization headquartered in Zug,

Switzerland, dedicated to the decentralization, growth, and security of the
Solana network.
Solana has a very vibrant ecosystem with more than 400 DeFi, NFTs, Web3
projects.
Consensus mechanism: Solana uses Proof of History (PoH) and Tower

BFT.
Wallets
There are several mobile, web, and command-line wallets for SOL.
For updated information on Solana (SOL), see:

https://www.futuremoneywallet.com/crypto_details.php?symbol=SOL
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39. Stacks (STX)
Stacks is a blockchain that brings smart contracts, non-fungible tokens

(NFT), and decentralized applications (DApps) to Bitcoin.
Since Stacks uses Bitcoin as a base layer, everything that happens on

Stacks is settled on the Bitcoin Blockchain. Stacks connects directly to the
Bitcoin blockchain through its proof-of-transfer (PoX) consensus
mechanism.
To understand the proof-of-transfer (PoX) consensus mechanism used by

Stacks, let's do a quick recap of some of the basic mechanisms.
Proof-of-work, used by Bitcoin, requires miners to dedicate computing

resources. In proof-of-stake blockchains, validators dedicate financial
resources to secure the network. Proof-of-burn is a consensus mechanism
in which miners compete by "burning" or "destroying" a proof-of-work crypto
as a proxy for computing resources.
Proof-of-transfer (PoX) is an extension of proof-of-burn. PoX uses the

proof-of-work crypto of a credible blockchain to secure a new blockchain.
But instead of "burning the crypto", miners transfer the committed crypto to
some other participants in the network.
Stacks also operates the .BTC top-level domain. You can get a domain
name at a cost of $5 USD for 5 years. To register a .BTC name, you need
to send a transaction to the Blockchain Name System (BNS) smart contract
on the Stacks blockchain. This transaction gets finalized on Bitcoin. This
makes .BTC names censor-proof.
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The Stacks token (STX) fuels the:
•  execution of smart contracts,

•  processing of transactions, and
•  registration of new digital assets.
Stacking rewards Stacks (STX) token holders with bitcoin for temporarily
locking up their tokens.
Wallets
Popular Stacks wallets include Hiro Wallet, Xcerse, D'Cent, Boom Wallet,
Cerebro, and Neptune.
For updated information on Stacks (STX), see:

https://www.futuremoneywallet.com/crypto_details.php?symbol=STX
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40. Stellar (XLM)
Stellar is a blockchain payments network. Its native token is Stellar Lumens

(XLM). Stellar is a fork of the Ripple protocol.
Assets on the Stellar network are issued and redeemed by trusted entities
called anchors.
Anchors leverage a distributed exchange (DEX) to enable real world assets

to be exchanged on Stellar. The DEX maintains an order book for every
asset pair.
For updated information on Stellar (XLM), see:

https://www.futuremoneywallet.com/crypto_details.php?symbol=XLM
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41. SushiSwap (SUSHI)
SushiSwap (SUSHI) is a decentralized protocol for providing automated

liquidity on Ethereum.
It is a decentralized exchange and a decentralized lending market. It also

enables yield instruments and staking derivatives.
In late 2020, Yearn.finance and SushiSwap announced a merger under

which they would share development resources, but maintain separate
tokens and governance systems.
For updated information on SushiSwap (SUSHI), see:

https://www.futuremoneywallet.com/crypto_details.php?symbol=SUSHI
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42. Terra (LUNA)
Terra is one of the largest Decentralised Finance (DeFi) blockchains.
The top DeFi protocols that run on Terra are:
•  Anchor (ANC)
•  Lido (LDO)
•  Mirror (MIR)
•  Terraswap
•  Pylon Protocol (MINE)
Terra is an open-source public blockchain protocol for algorithmic

stablecoins. It enables the creation of fiat-pegged stablecoins that can be
spent, saved, traded, or exchanged on the Terra blockchain.
The protocol consists of 2 main tokens:
1.  Terra stablecoins: These are stablecoins that are minted by burning
Luna.
2.  Luna: This is the protocol's native staking token that is used for
governance and in mining.
Wallets
Trust Wallet is popularly used for Terra (LUNA).
For updated information on Terra (LUNA), see:

https://www.futuremoneywallet.com/crypto_details.php?symbol=LUNA
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43. Tezos (XTZ)
Tezos is a smart contract enabled blockchain similar to Ethereum.
It offers peer-to-peer (P2P) transactions via its native token XTZ (called
Tezzie).
Tezos has a unique type of staking process. Holders stake 8,000 XTZ and
are then vote on proposed changes to the blockchain's code in a multi-step
process that takes around 23 days.
For updated information on Tezos (XTZ), see:

https://www.futuremoneywallet.com/crypto_details.php?symbol=XTZ
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44. The Graph (GRT)
The Graph is a decentralized protocol for indexing and querying data from
blockchains. Developers can build and publish open APIs (subgraphs) that
make data easily accessible.
The Graph is currently used by many projects including Uniswap, Synthetix,

and Decentraland.
GRT is a token that is locked-up by protocol participants to provide services

to the network.
For updated information on The Graph (GRT), see:

https://www.futuremoneywallet.com/crypto_details.php?symbol=GRT
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45. The Sandbox
(SAND)
The Sandbox is a blockchain-based metaverse (virtual world) with a "play-

to-earn" model. Its native utility token is $SAND. The metaverse is made up
of parcels of digital real-estate called LAND.
Players can build, own, and monetize gaming experiences using non-
fungible tokens (NFTs) and $SAND. The digital assets created by players
as NFTs can be integrated into games with The Sandbox Game Maker.
For updated information on The Sandbox (SAND), see:

https://www.futuremoneywallet.com/crypto_details.php?symbol=SAND
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46. Theta (THETA)
Theta is like Airbnb for video streaming - viewers earn rewards for sharing
excess bandwidth and computing resources.
Theta’s benefits are:

•  Users earn rewards for sharing excess bandwidth & computing
resources.
•  Viewers get better quality streaming services.
•  Content creators improve their earnings.
•  Video platforms don't have to build expensive infrastructure.
•  Video platforms can increase revenues.
Theta also has smart contract capability for fully digitized item ownership,
payment-consumption models, transparent royalty distributions, etc. Theta
Enterprise Validators include Google, Binance, Sony Europe, and
Samsung.
The Theta blockchain has two native tokens:

•  Theta (THETA) for governance, and
•  Theta Fuel (TFUEL) for powering transactions.
Consensus mechanism: Proof of Stake
Wallets
Theta has its own wallet.
For updated information on Theta (THETA), see:

https://www.futuremoneywallet.com/crypto_details.php?symbol=THETA
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47. Uniswap (UNI)
Uniswap (UNI) is a decentralized protocol for automated liquidity provision

on Ethereum.
One major problem with illiquid assets on regular exchanges is "high

spreads".
Uniswap solves this problem by enabling everyone to become a market

maker. Uniswap suffers from high slippage for large orders because the
price paid increases with the increase in the quantity.
UNI holders collectively control:
•  Uniswap governance
•  UNI community treasury
•  The protocol fee switch
•  Uniswap.eth ENS name
•  Uniswap Default List (tokens.uniswap.eth)
•  SOCKS liquidity tokens
For updated information on Uniswap (UNI), see:

https://www.futuremoneywallet.com/crypto_details.php?symbol=UNI
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48. VeChain (VET)
VeChain is an enterprise blockchain for supply chain management and

Internet of Things (IoT).
There are 2 tokens on VeChain - VeChain Token (VET) and VeChainThor

Energy (VTHO).
VeChain Token (VET) is used to relay value across the VeChains network.
VeChainThor Energy (VTHO) powers smart contract transactions as energy
or "gas".
For updated information on VeChain (VET), see:

https://www.futuremoneywallet.com/crypto_details.php?symbol=VET
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49. Waves (WAVES)
Waves is a blockchain protocol and development toolset for Web 3.0

applications. Issuing custom tokens on Waves is very easy. Ride is the
native language of Wave for smart contract creation.
Waves transactions have fixed fees and no variable gas fees.
Waves is an open Leased-Proof-of-Stake (LPoS) blockchain focused on

speed, scalability, security, and user experience. It uses the Waves-NG
protocol.
For updated information on Waves (WAVES), see:

https://www.futuremoneywallet.com/crypto_details.php?symbol=WAVES
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50. Zcash (ZEC)
Zcash is a "privacy coin" and by default, its transactions do not reveal the
sending & receiving addresses or the amount being sent. Optionally, this
data can be revealed for auditing or regulatory compliance.
Zcash uses the zk-SNARK zero-knowledge proof technology. This enables

allows nodes to verify transactions without revealing any sensitive
information about the transactions.
For updated information on Zcash (ZEC), see:

https://www.futuremoneywallet.com/crypto_details.php?symbol=ZEC
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Part C
Start your crypto journey
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1. The 11 ways to profit
from Crypto
1. Airdrops
An airdrop is a marketing activity by a new crypto project. A small amount of

crypto is sent out for "free" to increase awareness. It's not entirely "free" as
you may need to do some promotional work like retweeting a post, sharing
a link with your network, etc. If you want to bypass this work, you can
signup for automated services.
You can use sites like https://airdropalert.com to find the best airdrops.
2. Crypto Affiliate Programs
Most Crypto exchanges, trading platforms, and wallet services offer

commissions if you refer new customers to them. All you need to do is
signup for a referral code and then share links to your social networks.
3. Learn Crypto - Earn Crypto
Some Cryptos pay you to learn about them. This is great because you are
getting paid to learn interesting stuff! All you need to do is watch some
videos, take a quiz, and get rewarded in the crypto you have just learned
about. A great place to start is https://coinmarketcap.com/earn
4. Play to Earn games
Did you know that you can get free Crypto just by playing blockchain-based
games? Some of the top Play to Earn games are Decentraland (MANA),
The Sandbox (SAND), Axie Infinity (AXS), and Gala (GALA).
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5. HODL
HODL is an acronym for ‘Hold on for Dear Life’. Most bitcoin investors I
know fall under this category. So while they don't ‘book’ profits, their net
worth can skyrocket or crash depending upon crypto prices. You really need
to be a ‘believer’ and a long-term player for this.
6. Dividends
Some crypto exchanges pay dividends similar to how companies pay

dividends to shareholders. An example is KuCoin, a crypto exchange that
pays 50% of all trading fees as dividends to Kucoin Shares (KCS) holders.
7. Staking
Bitcoin uses ‘mining’ to validate transactions. This costs a huge amount of

electricity and computational power. Many other cryptos e.g. Solana, Terra,
Cardano use a more eco-friendly way of validating transactions - proof of
stake. This requires you to temporarily ‘lock’ your crypto in a wallet or
exchange.
Example: You could earn an annual return of 92.25% by staking The Graph
(GRT). You can check out the staking rewards for various cryptos at
StakingRewards.
8. Lend cryptos
You can lend your crypto and earn interest. Examples: The annual interest
on Bitcoin is currently 4.75% while that on Tether (USDT) is 12.51%.
9. Provide liquidity
Providing liquidity on Decentralised Finance (DeFi) platforms is an

excellent, though slightly complex, way of profiting from crypto. You can get
started with Uniswap, an automated liquidity protocol for Ethereum tokens.
Each liquidity pool has a smart contract to enable swapping tokens and
adding liquidity.
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10. Bug bounties
Many projects pay serious money if you find bugs in their platform/code.
This requires a ton of ‘hacking’ talent.
11. Day trading
People gamble on a lot of things - horse races, dog races, lotteries, and
even cockroach races! In fact, there are many ‘prediction markets’ out there
for gamblers. Well, day traders gamble on cryptos. This is probably the
riskiest and most stressful way to try to make money.
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2. Building your Crypto
portfolio
Now that you have almost completed the course, it's time to start your
crypto journey!
Stage 1: Starting off with a zero budget
If I was just starting out with crypto and had a zero budget, I would earn free
cryptos. There are 3 ways of doing this:
1. Airdrops
New crypto startups use airdrops as a marketing strategy. They give free
cryptos in return for promoting their website and social media accounts. You
can get a list of the latest airdrops from coinmarketcap.com and
airdropalert.com
2. Learn & Earn programs

Many cryptos run small courses to build awareness about their project. You
need to watch a small video and take a small quiz and you get free cryptos.
There is an earn section on coinmarketcap.com and coinbase.com
3. Play to Earn games

As the name suggests, these are blockchain-based games that give you
free cryptos for playing them. Some of these games are Decentraland,
Sandbox, Axie Infinity, Gala
Stage 2: $100 budget
If I was buying my first crypto, it would be Bitcoin (BTC). Bitcoin is the big
daddy of crypto and whenever it dips, the entire crypto market dips and
whenever it zooms up, the entire market goes with it.
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Stage 3 - $1,000 budget
If I had a budget up to $1000, I would stick to the big boys:

•  Bitcoin (BTC)
•  Ether (ETH)
•  Binance Coin (BNB)
Stage 4 - $10,000 budget
If I was in this bracket, I would spread my money on the top cryptos in some
of these 4 sectors:
1. DAO
The top cryptos include Aave (AAVE), Compound (COMP), Curve DAO
Token (CRV), Dash (DASH), Decred (DCR), Maker (MKR), SushiSwap
(SUSHI), and Uniswap (UNI).
2. DeFi
The top cryptos include Aave (AAVE), Curve DAO Token (CRV),
PancakeSwap (CAKE), SushiSwap (SUSHI), and Uniswap (UNI).
3. Gaming & Metaverse

The top cryptos include Axie Infinity (AXS), Decentraland (MANA), Enjin
Coin (ENJ), Gala (GALA), and The Sandbox (SAND).
4. Web 3.0
The top cryptos include Arweave (AR), Basic Attention Token (BAT),
Filecoin (FIL), Chainlink (LINK), and Theta (THETA)
Stage 5 - Over $10,000 budget
Now the game gets serious. Anyone in this bracket should take advice from
someone who knows their way around crypto. You will need solid advice
around Yield Farming, Liquidity Pools, DeFi protocols & more.
All the best! I hope you have an awesome Crypto journey.
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3. FUTURE Indexes
A crypto index is a mathematical method for tracking the performance of a
group of crypto assets. Sophisticated investors use Indexes to make better
decisions.
1. FUTURE Currency Index
The FUTURE Currency Index is a market capitalization index based on

Bitcoin Cash (BCH), Bitcoin (BTC), Dash (DASH), Litecoin (LTC), Monero
(XMR), and Zcash (ZEC). Its base date is 24th February 2022.
2. FUTURE DAO Index
The FUTURE DAO Index is a market capitalization index based on Aave

(AAVE), Compound (COMP), Curve DAO Token (CRV), Dash (DASH),
Decred (DCR), Maker (MKR), SushiSwap (SUSHI), and Uniswap (UNI). Its
base date is 24th February 2022.
3. FUTURE DeFi Index
The FUTURE DeFi Index is a market capitalization index based on Aave

(AAVE), Balancer (BAL), PancakeSwap (CAKE), Compound (COMP),
Curve DAO Token (CRV), Maker (MKR), SushiSwap (SUSHI), and Uniswap
(UNI). Its base date is 24th February 2022.
4. FUTURE Gaming & Metaverse Index
The FUTURE Gaming & Metaverse Index is a market capitalization index

based on Axie Infinity (AXS), Decentraland (MANA), Enjin Coin (ENJ), Gala
(GALA), and The Sandbox (SAND). Its base date is 24th February 2022.
5. FUTURE Web3 Index
The FUTURE Web3 Index is a market capitalization index based on

Arweave (AR), Audius (AUDIO), Basic Attention Token (BAT), Chainlink
(LINK), Filecoin (FIL), Helium (HNT), Livepeer (LPT), Siacoin (SC), The
Graph (GRT), and Theta (THETA). Its base date is 24th February 2022.
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4. Useful resources
The latest version of the Crypto Playbook is at:
https://www.rohasnagpal.com/crypto-playbook.php
For Crypto Metrics, you can use:
•  CoinMarketCap: https://coinmarketcap.com/
•  Messari: https://messari.io
•  DeFiLlama: https://defillama.com
•  Future Money Wallet: https://www.futuremoneywallet.com
Cryptocurrency dividends calculators

https://www.bestcryptodividends.com
Detailed resources for staking cryptos:

www.stakingrewards.com
My podcast – Cut the Cryp

https://www.rohasnagpal.com/podcast-cut-the-cryp.php
Bisq is a peer-to-peer bitcoin trading network which you run on your own
hardware. It's open-source and community-driven.
https://bisq.network
Connect with me on social media:
•  LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/rohasnagpal
•  Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/rohasnagpal
•  Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/rohasnagpal
•  Twitter: https://www.twitter.com/rohasnagpal
•  Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/rohasnagpal
•  Quora: https://www.quora.com/profile/Rohas-Nagpal
138
5. Glossary of crypto
terms
1. Address
A crypto address represents a "destination" on a blockchain. Consider it as
a bank account number. You can generate unlimited addresses on your
own.
This is an example of a Bitcoin address:

1AHr3RDJS7v8ruFLbVoxXsgVeGqYqALqQ8
In most blockchains, the addresses are public and anyone can see the
transactions and balances relating to an address using a blockchain
explorer. You won't be able to do this on ‘privacy-based’ blockchains like
Monero.
2. Airdrop
An airdrop is a marketing activity by a new crypto project. A small amount of
crypto is sent out for ‘free’ to increase awareness. It's not entirely ‘free’ as
you may need to do some promotional work like re-tweeting a post, sharing
a link with your network, etc.
3. Algorithm
An algorithm is a set of steps or actions to be followed. In the Crypto world,
some of the most famous algorithms are:
•  Advanced Encryption Standard (AES), used for the encryption of

electronic data.
•  Elliptic Curve Digital Signature Algorithm (ECDSA), used for electronic

signatures.
•  Secure Hash Algorithm 2 (SHA-2), a cryptographic hash function.
4. All-Time-High (ATH)
‘All-Time High’ (ATH) is the highest price or market capitalization that a
crypto has reached since its listing or creation. It shows the ‘theoretical
potential’ of the crypto. Remember that there is no guarantee that the
Crypto will ever hit that high again.
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5. All-Time-Low (ATL)
All-Time Low (ATL) is the lowest price or market capitalization that a Crypto
has reached since its listing or creation.
6. Altcoin
Bitcoin, the big daddy of Crypto, is the world's first Cryptocurrency. All other
Cryptocurrencies are called "alternative coins" or "altcoins". There are more
than 8,000 altcoins!
7. Anti-Fragile
An anti-fragile asset performs better when there is risk and uncertainty.
This concept was created by the famous author Nassim Nicholas Taleb.
He says that "some things benefit from shocks; they thrive and grow when
exposed to volatility, randomness, disorder, and stressors and love
adventure, risk, and uncertainty".
A classic example is Bitcoin (BTC). It has become stronger with every hit it
has suffered.
8. Arbitrage
Arbitrage is when you quickly buy and sell the same asset in different
markets to take advantage of price differences between the markets.
Almost all markets (the cryptocurrency markets, stock markets, gold

markets, etc.) are inefficient. That's what gives rise to arbitrage
opportunities.
9. Ashdraked
Ashdraking is the complete loss of a crypto investor's capital as a result of
shorting Bitcoin.
The term is named after ‘Lord Ashdrake’, a pseudonymous Romanian

Bitcoin trader who used to short Bitcoin - betting that its value would
decline.
Initially, he made large profits as Bitcoin declined in 2014 - 2015. Then he

shorted Bitcoin at $300. Prices went to $600 in a few weeks and he lost all
his money.
140
10. ASIC
Application-specific integrated circuits (ASICs) are ‘crypto mining
machines’. They maximize computing power while keeping energy costs
low.
While calculating the profitability of an ASIC, you need to consider:

1. The number of hashes per second it can generate.
2. The total hash rate across the crypto network.
3. The value of the crypto being mined.
4. The energy cost per hash generated.
5. The cost of the ASIC.
11. Ask / Bid price

The ask price is the amount a seller is willing to sell a crypto for. The bid
price is the amount a buyer is willing to pay for a crypto.
The difference between the bid and ask price is the bid-ask spread. The
spread is a measure of the demand and supply for a crypto. The higher the
spread, the more the profit for market makers.
12. Asset class

An asset class is a group of investments that have similar characteristics
and are subject to the same laws.
The main asset classes are:

•  Equities
•  Bonds
•  Money market instruments
•  Real estate
•  Commodities
•  Derivatives
•  Cryptocurrencies
There is very little (or even negative) correlation between different asset
classes.
13. Astroturfing
Astroturfing is an illegal activity in which someone tries to gain credibility by
making marketing messages appear to come from real people.
141
This happened a lot during the ICO boom. Crypto companies used to create
fake Twitter, Telegram and Discord accounts and then post positive
messages from these accounts.
There are several online tools which you can use to check the authenticity
of social media profiles.
14. Atomic Swap

An atomic swap enables direct wallet-to-wallet trading between crypto
investors using a smart contract instead of a crypto exchange.
Example: A sends 10 dollars to B and simultaneously B sends 700 rupees

to A.
Because this happens in a single transaction, it guarantees atomicity. This

means that either both the transfers will take place simultaneously, or none
will take place. This is also called delivery-versus-payment (DvP).
15. Attestation Ledger

An attestation ledger is an account book that provides evidence of
individual transactions. It is used to ‘attest’ that a financial transaction has
taken place. It can prove the authenticity of transactions.
16. Automated Market Maker (AMM)

An automated market maker (AMM) is a system that provides liquidity
through automated trading. AMM-based decentralized exchanges do not
have order books and centralized parties.
Each liquidity pool is defined by a smart contract that includes functions to

enable swapping tokens and adding liquidity.
Example: Uniswap is a protocol for creating liquidity and trading ERC-20

tokens on Ethereum. It enables its users to earn by supplying liquidity and
to exchange between various assets.
17. Balancer Pool

An index fund is one whose portfolio matches / tracks a financial market
index like BSE SENSEX or S&P 500.
Index funds charge investors a fee for managing and holding their funds.
142
Now imagine an index fund where the investor collects fees from traders
who rebalance the investor's portfolio by following arbitrage opportunities.
That's a Balancer Pool - an automated market maker that functions as a

self-balancing weighted portfolio and price sensor.
18. Bear Trap

A bear trap starts with a group of crypto traders selling a large number of
cryptos. This makes other traders sell since they suspect a price correction.
This causes the price to fall further.
That's when the bear trap is released when the earlier sellers buy back the
crypto at a lower price. Bear traps can happen over hours or days.
19. Bear
A bear is a crypto trader who excepts the crypto market prices to go down
over a particular period. A bear market is one that is experiencing significant
fall in prices. The most famous crypto bear market was the Bitcoin decline
in 2013 - 2015.
20. Block Explorer

All the transactions in a blockchain are stored in blocks of data. A block
explorer (also called a blockchain browser) enables anyone to view the data
in individual blocks. That's what makes blockchains so transparent.
21. Block reward

A blockchain is a sequence of individual blocks. Each block contains the
record of transactions that were completed in a given period.
In a proof-of-work blockchain like Bitcoin, each block has a mathematical

problem that must be solved before it is added to the blockchain. The miner
who first solves it gets paid a block reward.
The Bitcoin block reward started at 50 BTC and halves every 210,000
blocks (approx. 4 years).
22. Block
A blockchain is a sequence of individual blocks. In the bitcoin blockchain,
every block contains the timestamp, transaction record, hash reference of
the previous block and nonce (solution to the mathematical puzzle).
143
23. Blockchain Trilemma
The blockchain trilemma is the challenge in achieving a balance between:
•  Scalability - the speed and volume of transactions.
•  Decentralization - the distribution of network nodes.
•  Security - the integrity of the system from compromise.
It is believed that an equal prioritization of all 3 factors at once is not
possible.
24. Blockchain
Today, the Internet enables the movement of data (videos, text, photos and
more) globally in milliseconds. But try moving value (money, loyalty points
etc.) and you will be surprised by the costs, inefficiencies and time delays.
Blockchain is a revolutionary technology that enables ‘internets of value’

that can move value in seconds - money, loyalty points, equity shares,
bonds, coupons, votes, intellectual property and much more.
25. Bollinger Band

A Bollinger band is a technical analysis tool that consists of three lines: a
simple moving average, an upper band, and a lower band. A bollinger band
is used as a visual indicator for estimating the volatility of a crypto.
26. Bonding Curve

A bonding curve is a mathematical concept describing the relationship
between the price and the supply of a crypto coin / token. The underlying
logic is that when someone buys a crypto with limited supply (e.g. BTC), the
next buyer will have to pay more for it. Why? Because the number of
available units decreases with each purchase. A bonding curve contract
issues its own tokens through buy and sell functions.
27. Coinbase
In mineable cryptos like BTC, miners do 4 things:
1.  collect the most recent transactions
2.  package them into blocks
3.  secure the blocks with cryptographic hashes
4.  add the blocks to the end of the blockchain
This costs electricity and computational power.
Their incentive is a special transaction in every new block – newly “mined”

coins - called the coinbase of the block.
144
28. UTXO
Unspent Transaction Output (UTXO) is a record-keeping model used by
Bitcoin and some other cryptos.
These cryptos do not use accounts or balances. Individual coins (UTXOs)

are transferred between users. This is similar to physical coins or cash.
Your wallet keeps track of the unspent transactions associated with all your
addresses. The wallet balance is the sum of all the unspent transactions.
Ethereum uses the Account / Balance model and not UTXO. This keeps
track of the balance of each account.
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Crypto

Even people who do not believe in the

Edition date: 14 March 2022

Currently, he is the Chief Blockchain Architect of the Hybrid Finance

He writes weekly columns for NDTV and Mint.

He also conducts the free Blockchain ADDS (Administration, Design,

(c) 2022 Rohas Nagpal. All rights reserved.

The information in my documents, social media networks, websites, and

I am not a financial adviser. You should consider seeking independent legal,

I link to external resources for your convenience. I am selective about them

The inclusion or exclusion of any word, or its capitalization, in this book is

Images courtesy: Unsplash, Pixabay.com, Freepik.com

Part A – The Basics

1. What are Blockchains?............................................................................09

1. Aave (AAVE) ...........................................................................................62

Part C – Start your crypto journey

1. The 11 ways to profit from Crypto..........................................................132

A blockchain is typically a bunch of computers (nodes) connected to

Now that’s something like a blockchain.

A blockchain is typically a bunch of computers (nodes) connected to each

Some of the most popular blockchains are:

For more on each of these blockchains, see:

Video on "Blockchain Basics":

Video on "Introduction to Ethereum":

Video on "Introduction to 15 Public Blockchains":

"How to send an email to an Ethereum address":

Based on my analysis, Cryptos can be divided into 11 categories:

R = Ready money e.g. Bitcoin (BTC)

I will go deeper into these 11 categories in the next lesson.

In the Bitcoin-style, there are a bunch of computers / entities called miners

Another thing to remember is that in most Bitcoin-style Cryptos, there is no

Ethereum-token style Cryptos

My daughters were quite fed up hearing about dog-themed Cryptos. So

Based on my analysis, Cryptos can be divided into 11 categories:

2. Open Blockchain Tokens

An Open Blockchain Token (OBT) is a unique form of crypto recognized

Example: Wrapped Asset Token (WRAP)

Example: Monero (XMR)

Security tokens are like equity shares and represent ownership of a

6. Non-Fungible Tokens (NFTs)

Algorithmic stablecoins are Cryptos whose price stability is maintained by

Example: Frax (FRAX)

Governance tokens give holders a vote in a project’s development.

9. Public Blockchain natives

Using a public blockchain involves the payment of gas fees or transaction

Example: Ether (ETH)

An asset-backed token or a Wrapped Asset is a blockchain token pegged to

Example: Coffee coin

11. Lending / Borrowing Cryptos

Example: Aave (AAVE)

This is what a typical Bitcoin wallet looks like:

[address] => 1Mk13r5uu51F5jQ6yGuBPxkuZw91nM4MeY

[wif] => L5crYHJ3wP1KF88guJChXPDaqNJ6dS3WBv56JN1o491K7FdMtXdd

If you write this down on a piece of paper, it would be called a… paper

Usually, people store their crypto in a mobile or web wallet. That’s a

Metamask is a popular browser-based crypto wallet.

An example of a seed phrase is:

www.bitaddress.org is a JavaScript Client-Side Bitcoin Wallet Generator. It

q  Remember to keep a backup copy of the private key in a safe location.

q  If you leave/refresh the site or press the "Generate New Address"

q  You can check your balance by going to www.blockchain.com/explorer

q  100% encrypted chats with your contacts.

q  Unlimited transactions without fees in any token.

q  Pillar replaces alpha-numeric addresses with simple usernames.

1.  How will Crypto profits be taxed?

1.  Supply metrics (Circulating, Maximum & Total)

•  Bitcoin (BTC): 41.8%

•  double-spending coins, and

1.  Bitcoin (BTC)

1.  Algo-Stables: This includes algorithmic coins & stablecoins.

7.  Gaming: These are protocols that have gaming components.

1.  Aave (AAVE)