Cryptocurrency is a digital currency that has been encrypted and can only be used with the right encryption key.
It is monitored and organized by a peer-to-peer network called a blockchain, which also serves as a secure ledger of transactions, e.g., buying, selling, and transferring.
Unlike physical money, cryptocurrencies are not issued by governments or other financial institutions.
Cryptocurrencies are created (and secured) through cryptographic algorithms that are maintained and confirmed in a process called mining, where a network of computers or specialized hardware such as application-specific integrated circuits (ASICs) process and validate the transactions.
The process incentivizes the miners who run the network with the cryptocurrency.
Bitcoin, Ether, Litecoin, and Monero are some of the most popular cryptocurrencies.