Glossary

A
Airdrop

 The distribution of digital assets to the general public, either through holding a certain token or simply by having an active wallet address on a particular blockchain.

Algorithm

A set of specific instructions used to solve a problem.

All-Time High (ATH)

The highest price of a cryptocurrency in a particular currency, such as USD, BTC, ETH, or BNB.

Allocation

 A set amount of tokens or equity that may be earned, purchased, or reserved for a particular investor, team, group, organization, or other entity.

Altcoin

A cryptocurrency that is an alternative to Bitcoin. It is used to describe cryptocurrencies other than Bitcoin.

Angel Investor

A wealthy investor who looks for opportunities to provide funding for startups or entrepreneurs.

Anti Money Laundering (AML)

A framework of legal and regulatory procedures designed to reduce and prevent the flow of funds from illegal or questionable activities.

Application Programming Interface (API)

 A set of functions and procedures that allow users to interact with the data of an application or service, such as an exchange, and execute the features of the service programmatically.

Application-Specific Integrated Circuit (ASIC)

An integrated circuit that is customised for optimal performance in a specific use, rather than general-purpose use.

Arbitrage

The buying and selling of assets in different markets to take advantage of different prices for the same asset.

ASIC-Resistant

A cryptocurrency that is configured in such a way that using ASIC machines to mine it is either impossible or not significantly more effective than traditional GPU mining.

Asset Management

A system or method that helps individuals or companies manage their assets, either on behalf of their clients or for themselves.

Auction

A live event where assets or services are negotiated through a bidding process, often led by an auctioneer.

B
Bear Market

A downward trend in market prices. This term is commonly used in the cryptocurrency and traditional markets.

Benchmark

A standard used to measure the performance of a specific asset or investment portfolio.

BEP-20

A token standard on Binance Smart Chain that extends the ERC-20 standard commonly used on Ethereum. It acts as a blueprint for tokens, defining how they can be spent, who can spend them, and other rules for their use. It is compatible with both Binance Chain's BEP-2 and Ethereum's ERC-20.

BEP-721

A technical standard that defines rules for issuing non-fungible tokens (NFTs) on the Binance Smart Chain ecosystem.

Beta (Release)

An early version of a program that is made available to users for testing and feedback. The beta stage comes after the alpha stage.

Bitcoin

A cryptocurrency created by the anonymous developer(s) known as Satoshi Nakamoto. It was the first cryptocurrency, initially described as a "peer-to-peer e-cash."

Bitcoin Dominance

The ratio of Bitcoin's market capitalization compared to the combined market capitalizations of all cryptocurrencies.

Block

A computer file that stores transaction data. These files can be arranged in a linear sequence to form a blockchain.

Block Explorer

 An online webpage that allows users to view the details of blocks and transactions on a blockchain.

Blockchain

 A decentralized, distributed ledger that records transactions on multiple computers, ensuring that the record cannot be altered retroactively without the alteration of all subsequent blocks and the consensus of the network.

Bull Market

An upward trend in market prices. This term is commonly used in the cryptocurrency and traditional markets.

Byte

A unit of digital information that consists of eight bits.

C
Central Bank

A financial institution that acts as a monetary authority and manages a state's currency, interest rates, and money supply.

Central Processing Unit (CPU)

The main processing unit of a computer, responsible for executing instructions of a computer program.

Centralized

When the planning and decision-making mechanisms are concentrated in a particular point within a system.

Chainlink

A decentralized oracle network that allows smart contracts to securely access off-chain data feeds, web APIs, and other external resources.

Circulating Supply

The best approximate number of cryptocurrency coins or tokens that are publicly available and circulating in the market.

Cold Storage

The practice of storing cryptocurrency offline, such as on a hardware wallet or paper wallet, to reduce the risk of it being stolen or hacked.

Collateral

An asset that is pledged as security to secure a loan or other type of credit.

Consensus

A general agreement among a group of people, often reached through discussion and compromise. In the context of cryptocurrency, consensus refers to the process of reaching agreement on the state of the blockchain, usually through a process called proof of work or proof of stake.

Cryptocurrency

A digital or virtual currency that uses cryptography for security and is decentralized, meaning it is not controlled by a central authority like a bank or government.

Cryptography

The practice of secure communication, which involves the use of codes, ciphers, and other techniques to protect information from unauthorized access or tampering.

D
Decentralized Application (DApp)

 An application that runs on a peer-to-peer (P2P) network of computers rather than on a single central computer. This allows the software to run on the internet without being controlled by a single entity.

Decentralized Autonomous Cooperative (DAC)

An organization that is controlled by shareholders rather than a central authority.

Decentralized Autonomous Organization (DAO)

A system of hard-coded rules that determine the actions that a decentralized organization will take.

Decentralized Exchange (DEX)

An exchange that does not require users to deposit funds to start trading and does not hold the funds for the user. Instead, users trade directly from their own wallets.

Decentralized Finance (DeFi)

The ecosystem of decentralized financial applications developed on top of blockchain networks.

Deep Web

The part of the web that is hidden and not indexed by traditional web search engines like Google.

Do Your Own Research (DYOR)

A piece of advice to research a coin or token oneself instead of following what others say.

Dollar Cost Averaging (DCA)

 Investing fixed dollar amounts over regular periods of time regardless of the price of the asset.

Double Spending

When a specific amount of coins are spent more than once, often as a result of a race attack or a 51% attack.

E
Eclipse Attack

When the majority of peers on a network are malicious and monopolize the network in order to prevent specific nodes from receiving information from honest nodes.

Encryption

The process of converting information or data into a secure code to prevent unauthorized access.

ERC-20

A technical standard used to issue and implement tokens on the Ethereum blockchain.

ERC-721

A non-fungible token on the Ethereum blockchain, which means each token is unique and not interchangeable.

Ethereum

A decentralized, open-source blockchain platform that enables smart contracts and decentralized applications to be built and run without downtime, fraud, or interference from a third party.

F
Fear Of Missing Out (FOMO)

The feeling of worry and anxiety that you might miss out on a potentially profitable opportunity.

Fiat

Money that is legally recognized as a form of payment by a government.

Finality

The guarantee that completed cryptocurrency transactions cannot be changed, reversed, or cancelled.

Fiscal Policy

 The way that a government adjusts tax rates and manages public funds.

Flippening

The moment when Ethereum (ETH) surpasses Bitcoin (BTC) in terms of market value.

Formal Verification

Using precise mathematical proof to ensure certain properties of cryptographic algorithms and blockchain mechanisms.

Full Node

A computer that fully follows the rules of a blockchain network and checks the validity of transactions and blocks.

Fundamental Analysis (FA)

Evaluating an asset based on its underlying characteristics and traits to determine its intrinsic value.

Futures Contract

A legally binding agreement to buy or sell an asset at a predetermined price and date in the future.

G
Gas

The pricing mechanism used on the Ethereum blockchain to calculate the costs of smart contract operations and transaction fees.

Gas Limit

The maximum fee that a cryptocurrency user is willing to pay when sending a transaction or performing a smart contract function.

Genesis Block

The first block recorded on a blockchain network, also known as Block 0 or Block 1.

GitHub

A website where teams can share, collaborate on, and save their open-source or proprietary code.

Gwei

A small unit of Ether. It is commonly used as a measure of gas prices. 1,000,000,000 wei = 1 Giga wei (Gwei).

H
Hacker

A person who has advanced knowledge of computer systems and networks, including programmers and cybersecurity experts.

Hard Cap

The maximum amount of money that a project plans to raise during its Initial Coin Offering (ICO) or other fundraising events.

Hash

The output is produced by a hash function after data is mapped. It may also be referred to as a hash value, hash code, or digest.

Hash Rate

The speed at which a computer or mining hardware can calculate new hashes. It is usually measured in hashes per second.

High-Frequency Trading (HFT)

A type of algorithmic trading that involves the execution of a large number of orders in a short period of time.

I
Index

A financial instrument is used to track the value of a specific asset or a group of assets.

Initial Coin Offering (ICO)

A fundraising method in which new projects sell their cryptocurrency to investors.

Initial DEX Offering (IDO)

 is a way for cryptocurrency projects to raise funds and launch their own token or coin through a decentralized exchange (DEX). This technique is similar to crowdfunding, but it takes place on a DEX rather than a traditional fundraising platform.

Initial Exchange Offering (IEO)

A fundraising method that involves a trusted intermediary between the project team and the user to reduce the risk for token buyers.

Initial Public Offering (IPO)

 The first time a private company offers its shares to the public.

INO

The sale of non-fungible tokens (NFTs) as a fundraising method for a project or organization. An NFT is a unique, digital asset that represents ownership of a specific item or piece of content, such as an art piece, collectible, or in-game item.

Integration

The process of combining different components, systems, or processes in order to create a unified whole. In the context of technology and software development, integration can refer to the process of integrating different software applications, systems, or platforms in order to achieve a specific goal or function.

K
Know Your Customer (KYC)

A standard procedure in the finance industry that requires companies to verify the identity of their customers and comply with anti-money laundering (AML) laws.

L
Layer 2

A protocol or framework that is built on top of an existing blockchain network to improve scalability.

Ledger

A record of financial transactions, either in a physical book or digital file.

Lightning Network

A layer on top of a blockchain network that allows for faster transactions among participating nodes. It is a proposed solution to increase scalability.

Liquidity

 The ability to easily buy or sell an asset without significantly affecting its price.

Listing

The process of adding an asset to an exchange, either at the request of the project team or by the decision of the exchange.

M
Mainnet

The final version of a blockchain protocol that is fully developed and deployed, where transactions are broadcast, verified, and recorded.

Mainnet Swap

When a coin migrates from a third-party platform like Ethereum or another token to a native on-chain token on their mainnet.

Malware

Any software program or code that is created to infiltrate and intentionally cause damage to computer systems and networks.

Market Cap

The total trading value of a given coin is calculated by multiplying the supply of the coin by the current price.

Market Momentum

 The ability of a particular market to maintain a continuous increase or decrease in price over a certain timeframe.

Maximum Supply

The maximum number of coins or tokens that will ever be created for a given cryptocurrency.

Metadata

Data that includes information about other data, such as information about features of a specific transaction.

Mining

The process of verifying transactions on a blockchain network, where transactions are added as entries into the blockchain ledger.

Mining Farm

A collection of many miners, often located in a warehouse or large data center, that are dedicated to mining cryptocurrencies.

Multisignature

 A wallet that requires another party to authorize a transaction before it is broadcast to the network.

N
Node

 A participant on a blockchain network that communicates with other participants to maintain the security and integrity of the system.

Non-fungible Token (NFT)

A cryptographic token that represents a unique digital or real-world asset that cannot be exchanged for other assets.

O
Off-chain

Transactions that occur outside a given blockchain network and may be later reported or consolidated before being submitted to the main chain.

Offshore account

An account registered in a jurisdiction different from the holder's citizenship.

Open-Source Software (OSS)

 Software that is released under a license that allows anyone to use, update, and distribute it freely.

Oracle

A third-party data source or feed used to determine outcomes for smart contracts.

Order Book

An electronic list of outstanding buy and sell orders for a specific asset on an exchange or marketplace.

P
Paper Wallet

A physical representation of a cryptocurrency address and its corresponding private key, usually printed on paper.

Peer-to-Peer (P2P)

A network architecture where two or more computers connect and share workload or resources without relying on a centralized server.

Phishing

A malicious attempt to obtain a user's credentials in order to gain unauthorized access to their account.

Private Key

A long number used in cryptocurrency to sign transactions and generate receiving addresses.

Private Sale

 An early stage investment round for strategic investors with a significant amount of investible funds.

Proof of Attendance (POA)

A protocol that creates digital badges or collectibles to record and celebrate the attendance of an event.

Proof of Reserve (PoR)

A method of demonstrating that a cryptocurrency exchange or other financial institution holds a certain amount of assets in reserve to back up the value of the assets it holds for its customers. This can help to build trust and confidence in the organization, as it shows that the organization is financially sound and able to honor its obligations to its customers. Proof of Reserve can take various forms, such as audited financial statements, third-party verifications, or published reserve balances. It is important for organizations to be transparent about their reserve holdings and to regularly update this information in order to maintain the trust of their customers.

Proof of Stake (PoS)

A consensus mechanism that rewards block validators based on the amount of coins they have at stake.

Proof of Work (PoW)

A consensus mechanism that requires computers on a network to perform a certain amount of work, or solve a complex mathematical problem, in order to validate transactions and create new blocks on the blockchain. The first computer to solve the problem is rewarded with a certain amount of cryptocurrency. PoW is used by many blockchain networks as a way to secure the network and prevent fraud. It requires a significant amount of computing power and energy, which makes it expensive and resource-intensive.

Q
QR Code

A two-dimensional barcode that can be scanned using a smartphone camera to reveal encoded information.

Quantum Bit (Qubit)

A unit of quantum information that can exist in multiple states simultaneously, allowing for more efficient computation than traditional binary bits.

Quantum Computing

 A type of computing that utilizes the principles of quantum mechanics to perform calculations faster and more efficiently than classical computers.

Quorum

 The minimum number of members required to be present at a meeting in order for the meeting to be considered valid and official.

R
Ransomware

A type of malicious software that encrypts a victim's files and demands payment in exchange for the decryption key.

Recovery Seed

A set of words or phrases used as a backup to recover or restore access to a digital wallet or other cryptocurrency-related account.

Relative Strength Index (RSI)

A technical analysis tool used to measure the strength of a security's price action, often used to determine when a security is overbought or oversold.

Return on Investment (ROI)

A metric used to evaluate the efficiency of an investment, calculated as the ratio of net profit to net cost.

Ring Miners

Participants in the Loopring protocol are responsible for managing the order-matching process and facilitating trades among users.

Roadmap

A high-level plan that outlines the short and long-term goals of a company, along with the steps and milestones that need to be achieved in order to reach those goals.

S
Satoshi

 The smallest unit of measurement for bitcoin, equivalent to 0.00000001 BTC.

Satoshi Nakamoto

The pseudonym used by the creator or creators of the bitcoin protocol and whitepaper.

Second-Layer Solutions

Additional protocols or networks built on top of a public blockchain to increase scalability and improve efficiency for micro-transactions or other actions.

Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC)

 A U.S. government agency responsible for enforcing federal securities laws and regulating securities markets.

Security Audit

A thorough examination of a system, smart contract, or blockchain to identify vulnerabilities and assess the overall security of the system.

Security Token

A digital asset that represents ownership of a traditional security, such as a stock or bond, and can be traded on a blockchain.

Seed Phrase

A set of words used as a backup to recover access to a digital wallet or other cryptocurrency-related account.

Smart Contract

Self-executing contracts with the terms of the agreement written directly into lines of code that can be automatically executed when certain conditions are met.

Snapshot

 A recorded state of a blockchain ledger, storage device, or computer system at a specific point in time.

S&P 500 (Standard and Poor’s 500)

A stock market index that comprises the 500 largest publicly traded companies in the United States, by market capitalization.

Stablecoin

A type of cryptocurrency designed to maintain a stable value, rather than experiencing significant price fluctuations.

Staking Pool

A group of individuals who combine their resources to increase their chances of successfully validating new blocks on a proof-of-stake blockchain.

Store of Value

A commodity, asset, or currency that can be saved and retrieved at a later time without losing value.

Supply Chain

The network of people and businesses involved in creating and distributing a product or service to customers.

T
Ticker

A shortened name or symbol used to identify a specific coin or token on a trading platform.

Token

A digital asset that represents a specific value or can be redeemed for other assets, typically issued on a blockchain.

Token Generation Event (TGE)

At the time at which a token is issued, TGEs are typically used by startups and blockchain-based projects to raise capital for development and growth. The tokens issued during a TGE can be used for a variety of purposes, such as to access the services of the project, to participate in the project's governance, or to receive dividends or other benefits.

Token Lockup

 A period of time during which a token or coin cannot be transferred or traded.

Token Sale

The issuance of tokens in exchange for another cryptocurrency, also known as an Initial Coin Offering (ICO).

Tokenomics

The study of the rules and principles that govern the issuance and circulation of a cryptocurrency's tokens.

Total Supply

The number of coins or tokens that currently exist and are either in circulation or locked in some way.

Total Value Locked (TVL)

The total value of assets that are currently being staked in a specific protocol.

Transaction ID (TXID)

A unique string of characters that labels each transaction on the blockchain.

Transactions Per Second (TPS)

 The number of transactions that a blockchain network is capable of processing per second.

TRC-10 (TRON)

 A technological token standard for the TRON blockchain network that does not require the TRON Virtual Machine.

U
Unbanked

 Refers to individuals or communities that lack access to traditional banking services or choose not to use them.

Unconfirmed

A state in which a transaction has not yet been added to a blockchain.

UNI Token

The native governance token of Uniswap, a decentralized exchange.

Unpermissioned Ledger

A public ledger that is open to anyone and is not controlled by a single entity.

Unrealized Profit & Loss

The potential gain or loss on an investment that has not yet been realized by selling the asset.

Unregulated

Something that is not controlled or overseen by a central authority or governing institution.

Unspent Transaction Output (UTXO)

 A transaction that has been completed but has not been spent, similar to leftover change after making a purchase.

Use Case

A description of how a system or product is used by a specific actor or group of actors in order to achieve a specific goal or outcome.

User Interface

 The means by which a user interacts with a digital device, such as a website or application.

Utility Token

 A type of token that is designed to provide access to a specific service or product, rather than being used as a form of investment.

V
Verification Code

A code sent to a secondary device to confirm the identity of someone logging in to an account, used as an added security measure in Two-Factor Authentication.

Vesting Period

A period of time during which the sale or transfer of a token is restricted.

Virtual Machine

 A software program that emulates the architecture of a physical computer system, or a distributed system that replicates the features of a computer's architecture.

Virtual Private Network (VPN)

A technology that creates a secure and encrypted connection over a public internet connection, providing anonymity and privacy.

Volatility

A measure of how rapidly and how much the price of an asset fluctuates, usually calculated in terms of standard deviations in the annual return of an asset over a set period of time.

Volume

A measurement of the number of individual units of an asset that have been traded in a market during a given time period.

W
Wallet

A digital wallet is used to store, send and receive cryptocurrencies. There are different types of digital wallets such as software wallets, hardware wallets, and paper wallets. Software wallets are digital wallets that are available as an app or software on a computer, hardware wallets are physical devices that can be used to store digital assets offline, and paper wallets are physical document that contains a private key for accessing a digital asset.

Web 1.0

The first version of the World Wide Web, which primarily consisted of read-only web pages connected by hyperlinks. It was also known as the "read-only" web, as users could only view and read the content, but not actively participate or contribute to it.

Web 2.0

Refers to the second generation of the World Wide Web, characterized by a shift from static, read-only pages to dynamic, interactive websites. It introduced new technologies that allowed for greater user participation and the creation of user-generated content, such as social media platforms, blogs, wikis, and online forums. Web 2.0 also allowed for greater integration of multimedia, including images, videos, and audio.

Web 3.0

This is the next stage of the development of the World Wide Web, also known as the "Semantic Web". It is a vision of a more intelligent and interconnected web, where machines can understand the meaning of the data on the web and use it to provide more personalized and relevant experiences for users. Web 3.0 is expected to be more decentralized and to use technologies such as blockchain, artificial intelligence, and natural language processing. It also aims to create an open and accessible web where users' data is more secure and private. Web 3.0 is expected to make the web more efficient by creating a web of connected data, where machines can understand and use information in a more meaningful way.

Whale

An individual or organization that holds a large amount of cryptocurrency, giving them significant influence on the markets.

Whitelist

A list of approved or trusted individuals, computer programs, or cryptocurrency addresses that are allowed to access a specific service or participate in an event.

Wrapped Ether (WETH)

An ERC-20 token that represents Ether at a 1:1 ratio. It allows users to trade ETH for ERC-20 tokens on decentralized platforms. Wrapped Ether is a standard ERC-20 token that is fully compatible with the Ethereum network and can be easily transferred and traded on decentralized exchanges, making it possible to use ETH in places where only ERC-20 tokens are accepted.

Z
Zero Confirmation Transaction

An alternative term for an unconfirmed transaction.

Zero Confirmation/Unconfirmed Transaction

 A transaction that has not yet been recorded or verified on the blockchain. It can be considered as a pending transaction that is waiting to be included in the next block.

Zero Knowledge Rollup

 A Layer 2 scaling solution that uses zero-knowledge cryptography to perform computations and storage off-chain, while funds are held in a smart contract.

Zk-Snarks

"Zero-Knowledge Succinct Non-Interactive Argument of Knowledge" - a specific approach to zero-knowledge proofs. It is a form of zero-knowledge proof that allows for proving possession of certain information, e.g. a secret key, without revealing that information, and without any interaction between the prover and verifier. This is achieved by using a combination of mathematical algorithms and cryptography, allowing for efficient and private verification of transactions on a blockchain.