After a decade of explosive growth, cryptocurrency has truly gone mainstream. Aside from the big, established names, new cryptocurrencies are launching almost daily. So let’s look at some of these coins and the process behind launching a new cryptocurrency.
How Are New Cryptocurrencies Made?
One of the unique things about cryptocurrencies is that they run on open-source technology.
Cryptocurrencies can be launched easily because, instead of building your own blockchain from scratch, the code of an existing blockchain can be copied. Modifications can be made per the builder’s desires, and a blockchain’s code is often copied without change. A new cryptocurrency is then born, with all the same underlying technicals as the original, but it is a distinct blockchain.
Another way cryptocurrencies can be born is via a contentious “fork.” A fork is simply a change in the blockchain’s protocol.
Sometimes a community can disagree about the direction of a blockchain. If this disagreement fails to be resolved, it can sometimes result in what is known as a fork. This is when the underlying code is tweaked, creating a second blockchain.
A high-profile example of this occurred with Bitcoin (BTC) between 2015 and 2017. Debates around scalability issues relating to Bitcoin’s design eventually led to a hard fork, creating Bitcoin Cash, a cryptocurrency completely distinct from Bitcoin.
Vitalik Buterin, the creator…
