The first time I heard the word cryptocurrency, I was in my sophomore year of high school, visiting my brother at college. My brother and his roommate rambled on about cryptocurrency, using confusing words I didn’t understand or have any interest in.

However, a couple months later, during the summertime, I was sitting in my kitchen talking to my brother and he again brought up the daunting word “cryptocurrency”. He suddenly transformed into the world’s greatest salesman as his eyes lit up and he promised economic prosperity and huge returns on investments. I was convinced, and so I officially entered into the crypto-world and made my first transaction, officially. I had invested my first $100 into a crypto coin called “Ethereum”.

It was exciting (mostly confusing, but exciting), and his enthusiasm towards it made me trust that he was really onto something. Curiosity arose inside of me so I began conducting my own form of causal Internet searches to discover where exactly my money had gone. I quickly learned the promising future of cryptocurrency as I watched video after video of investing experts ramble on about “blockchain technology” and “decentralized currency”.

To explain Bitcoin in simplest terms, it is a form of digital currency that can be electronically purchased and transferred. Each purchase is instantly and securely verified by the blockchain, which isthe technology created to prevent fraud. Blockchain technology creates a ledger for every single transaction made while keeping the identity of the owner a secret. This creates a vast chain of digital transactions, making it extremely difficult for a hacker to sort through every single transaction being made because they are decentralized. Blockchain technology helps prevent credit card fraud, a major problem that merchants in the United States lose $190 billion to a year according to Forbes.com.

I was constantly searching for more information and a greater understanding of cryptocurrency and my interest only grew after seeing Bitcoin prices surge along with the trending topic on twitter. However, along with this rising popularity, debates arose about the ethics behind Bitcoin and other cryptocurrencies.

For starters, the creator of Bitcoin, Satoshi Nakimoto, remains anonymous. Many identity claims have been made since the popularity has risen but still no single public face has surfaced. Without a known founder, Bitcoin naturally steers people away from it’s confusing possibilities.

Additionally, Bitcoin has gained a skeptical reputation for being able to purchase things off of the Black Market such as drug and human trafficking services. Criminals looking to perform an untraceable illegal act may be drawn to cryptocurrencies because of the block chain technology. This is because once a transaction has been made, it becomes difficult to track who made it. However, it is still very much possible, just a more tedious process than tracking a credit card back to its user. Certainly, law enforcement authorities are making efforts to eliminate the potential illegal activity.

On Dec. 18th, 2017 Bitcoin reached its highest price at nearly $20,000. It is important to note that the first Bitcoins in 2009 sold at only one tenth of a cent a piece, and in the last 12 months alone the price rose nearly $19,000. To put this into perspective, if you had invested $1 into bitcoin on October 5th of 2009, you would have purchased 1,309 bitcoins. Those same bitcoins at the peak price on December 17th, 2017 would have been worth nearly 26 million dollars, according to New Liberty Standard. Unfortunately, my 8 year old self, along with majority of investors, had very limited knowledge about this decentralized currency that could make you millions back in 2009 when it was birthed. While this return on your investment seems outstanding, many claim that bitcoin is a bubble waiting to burst before the prices drastically drop and the stock crashes.

However, with the way more and more large companies such as Microsoft, Dell, Overstock.com, Etsy, Expedia.com and Reddit are using cryptocurrency as a form of payment I predict the crypto world is just beginning. In order to make a purchase using Bitcoin you must have a Bitcoin wallet that allows you to receive, purchase and transfer bitcoins. A wallet can be an app, website or device that holds your private Bitcoin keys.  Next, to make your secure and private transaction with Bitcoin, you will scan the QR code of your payment from one device to the next with a specified amount. Another way to transfer bitcoins is to copy the URL of your specified payment. My brother used this method to send me a birthday present of Bitcoin Cash in a matter of minutes from all the way across the country. A downside of transferring bitcoin is the miner fees included for using the Bitcoin network.

There are over a thousand different cryptocurrencies to invest in. Since my first purchase of Ethereum over a year and a half ago I have diversified my portfolio of investments by buying into these 7 cryptocurrencies; Bitcoin (BTC), Ethereum (ETH),  Ripple (XRP), Binance (BNB), Bread (BRD), Bitcoin Cash (BCH) and Litecoin (LTC). For Bitcoin, Bitcoin Cash, Ethereum and Litecoin, all you need to do is download the app Coinbase, or any other reliable cryptocurrency wallet, and set up an account. However, things start to get confusing with coins like Ripple because it can only be bought with other cryptocurrencies. This coin can be purchased by copying the address of a crypto coin that can be bought with US dollars, like Ethereum or Bitcoin, into a wallet that sells Ripple, like Bitsane or Binance.

It may take several years before cryptocurrency really takes over daily life but when it does, I will be here for it and you should be waiting too.