What Is Cryptocurrency?

Cryptocurrency comes from two words: cryptography and currency.

Alias Jibril
May 18, 2026

Cryptocurrency comes from two words: cryptography and currency.

Cryptography is a term used in technology and computer engineering that means data protection.

It involves using mathematical algorithms to make information unreadable or encrypted so that only authorized people can access it.

This helps provide:

Currency is simply money.

Just like:

Money is anything a community agrees to use as a medium of exchange.

For example:

These are considered money because people accept and trust them for exchange.

If one day everyone stopped accepting the US Dollar as money, then it would lose its value as a currency.

Cryptocurrency is a digital and encrypted form of money.

Unlike physical cash, cryptocurrency exists online and is protected using cryptography.

Cryptocurrency is still a growing technology, and millions of people around the world use it for:

Especially in Africa, cryptocurrency creates opportunities for people to:

Personally, I first learned about cryptocurrency after receiving payment in crypto for services I provided online.

The major difference is that cryptocurrency is built on a technology called blockchain.

Blockchain technology allows cryptocurrency transactions to happen securely without relying entirely on banks or governments.

To understand cryptocurrency better, you first need to understand blockchain technology.

So in Episode 2, we’ll learn:

“What Is Blockchain Technology?”