Cryptocurrency is a way to trade currency and other assets digitally, independent of any third-party entity, such as a government or bank. These transactions take place on a decentralised ledger system called the blockchain. The first crypto was Bitcoin, and it remains a leading digital currency, along with Ethereum, XRP, and others.

A blockchain is a decentralised digital ledger where encrypted data can be transferred securely, making it nearly impossible to duplicate or counterfeit. This ledger is the foundation of any cryptocurrency transaction.

Read more about how the blockchain works here.

Staking is a process that allows rewards to be earned by holders of a specific coin.

Staking derives from the PoS (Proof-of-stake) mechanism, used by a distributed blockchain network, where blockchain miners can mine or validate block transactions according to how many coins they have. The more coins they hold, the more mining power they have. Staking rewards are shared with users who own the cryptoassets (like FXMarkets and our clients) and who delegate their voting rights to staking pools. The more validations that are delegated to a staking pool, the higher chance of being elected to produce the next block, and the more rewards likely to be received.

Cryptocurrencies can be traded in two ways. Either you purchase the actual tokens and trade them on a cryptocurrency platform, or you trade derivatives based on the underlying cryptocurrency price. Depending on local regulations in your country of residence, you can do one or both on the FXMarket platform.