Often referred to by crypto enthusiasts as the silver to bitcoin’s gold, litecoin merits a closer look. The rise of cryptocurrencies, led by bitcoin, has piqued interest of investors all over the world. And as the leading crypto coins, also known as tokens, become pricier, their less-expensive https://forex-review.net/ alternatives are garnering more attention in the crypto investing community. A ‘bubble’, in market terminology, is where the price of an asset far exceeds its intrinsic value. Litecoin had the initial aim of supplementing Bitcoin’s economy, rather than competing with it.
- Nothing in this material is (or should be considered to be) financial, investment or other advice on which reliance should be placed.
- Created by former Google engineer Charlie Lee, Litecoin was one of the first “altcoins”—a name given to cryptocurrencies other than Bitcoin (and sometimes other than Ethereum).
- Once your crypto account is verified, deposit funds to your account.
- Like Bitcoin, a significant driver of Litecoin’s value comes from transaction volumes, with Litecoin distinguishing itself as a relatively faster, cheaper, and more efficient network for transactions.
- The first step is to create an account on the platform where you want to trade Litecoin, whether it is on a spot or futures basis.
Still, the long-term success of any cryptocurrency is driven by developers. To garner both, a project needs unique technical properties that offer reasons for building on that protocol. Litecoin’s value proposition is not strong enough to attract a developer community, argues Mosoff. The token shares many features with bitcoin and is often touted by its supporters as a better alternative. For one, they are both decentralized cryptocurrencies and are built on a proof-of-work model, the underlying process by which both tokens are mined. However, they are still susceptible to hacks and malware contamination, which is a problem with any application that is installed on a computer that is always connected to the internet.
Once your crypto account is verified, deposit funds to your account. This stage might differ slightly for each platform, but most accept crypto deposits or fiat currencies with various payment methods, including debit cards and bank transfers. The leading cryptocurrency exchanges have a strict KYC/AML policy, so ensure you have up-to-date identity documents ready to upload. There are many similarities between Litecoin (LTC) and Bitcoin (BTC). However, the main differences are transaction speeds, fees and total supply. The Litecoin price spiked in November 2022 to around $80, then dropped back to the previous low.
Therefore, when choosing an exchange, be thorough in assessing their fees. Moreover, most brokerage firms that want to play in the global field are highly regulated, giving traders a high sense of security. When there is favourable news in the market, the price of LTC tends to shoot, and when the news is negative, LTC tends to take a dip. The Bitcoin and Litecoin networks are some of the oldest in the crypto space, and they share several similarities. Litecoin integrated SegWit before it was adopted on the Bitcoin network.
Any reputable firm will carry out verification checks as standard, but more often than not you are only required to do this when making your first withdrawal. The disadvantages involved in HODLing are probably fairly apparent. Firstly, you won’t be able to make profits on the frequent value fluctuations that occur around the clock as it simply isn’t practical to keep shifting your Litecoin. Secondly, HODLing will only allow you to make a profit if the value of your chosen crypto increases – there’s always the chance that the price may drop, leaving you at a loss.
Litecoin differs from Bitcoin in aspects like faster block generation rate and use of Scrypt (pronounced es-scrypt) as a proof of work scheme. Firstly, you’ll want to decide if you are just looking to trade Litecoin and perhaps some other cryptocurrencies, or if you’ll be wanting to explore other financial asset classes. Different trading exchanges and brokers will often vary in the services they provide. For example, some may only offer crypto and forex, whilst others will offer a whole complement of trading markets, including stocks, indices, and commodities. Of course, you can open as many trading accounts as you like, but it is often more convenient to use one platform for all your trading needs. Whilst Litecoin inevitably bears many similarities to its predecessor, there are a few key differences that have made LTC stand out as a trading asset with serious potential for growth.
Therefore, ensure that you know the requirements needed on the platform you want to use Litecoin. Most importantly, ensure that the platform you want to use is regulated in your country. Exchanges have also been built to be convenient to new and expert traders.
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While Litecoin may be great for day trading and even swing trading, be very careful when considering it for long-term investment. When you buy litecoin on an exchange, the price of one litecoin is usually quoted against the US dollar (USD). If the price of litecoin rises you will be able to sell for a profit, because it is now worth more USD than when you bought it. If the price falls and you decide to sell, then you would make a loss.
Your guide to trading Litecoin (LTC)
Litecoin (LTC) is an alternative cryptocurrency created in October 2011 by Charles « Charlie » Lee, a former Google engineer. Litecoin was adapted from Bitcoin’s open-source luno exchange review code but with several modifications. Like Bitcoin, Litecoin is based on an open-source global payment network that is not controlled by any central authority.
What Is Litecoin’s Ticker Symbol?
They provide both advanced and simple tools that make it easy for every trader to use despite their experience level. If Bitcoin surges in the future, Litecoin will probably rise; hence, an investor can predict what will happen to LTC by predicting what will happen to BTC. The only way that Litecoin can match up to Bitcoin is if it is adopted by many businesses globally. If a major institution adopts Litecoin, the price could see a significant spike. Bitcoin is known as the “digital gold”, while Litecoin is known as the “digital silver.” Litecoin has been in existence since 2011, and over the years, it has garnered a strong community support system.
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This kind of trading is done with a much shorter turnaround than with HODLing – successful cryptocurrency traders will often make numerous transactions in a single day. When trading in this way, you never actually own the underlying asset. Instead, you speculate on price movements via contracts for difference (CFDs). Miners must successfully solve hash functions in order to add new blocks of a cryptocurrency to the blockchain. Litecoin and bitcoin use different mining algorithms, with Scrypt being the hash function used for litecoin, and SHA-256 the hash function used for bitcoin. Scrypt was initially chosen by the litecoin development team to avoid mining being dominated by ASIC-based miners.
This has attracted criticism from the hardcore crypto crowd, who champion autonomy and self-sovereignty above all else. But for the rest of us, it’s a convenient way to invest in Litecoin. One of the main differences between Litecoin and Bitcoin is that the Bitcoin blockchain takes 10 minutes to process a single block, while on Litecoin it takes just 2.5 minutes.
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While Bitcoin is capped at a maximum supply of 21 million coins, Litecoin is capped at 84 million coins. “Litecoin is the second-oldest cryptocurrency, forked from the Bitcoin protocol in 2011,” says Jay Blaskey, digital currency specialist at BitIRA. “It was engineered to be used for fast, secure and low-cost payments.” Think of it as a Bitcoin spinoff.
Lee was the platform’s fifth employee; the crypto trading platform went public in May 2021, and holds a market cap of $48.8 billion as of March 27, 2022. Some argue that lower-valued altcoins are better placed to make higher future gains than the giants whose prices already sit atop the crypto heap. Based on this underlying assumption, one of the alternative instruments that has gained traction recently is litecoin (ticker symbol LTC). Litecoin’s lower price base makes it a good bet for price appreciation relative to the top dogs that make up the bulk of the virtual currency market capitalization.
Making trades out of the emotions of fear or greed can result in financial loss. Through a trading plan, you can determine whether you want to become a day trader or a long-term trader. Day trading is where you trade against the daily price movements of Litecoin.