WEBVTT - Bitcoin 101

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<v Speaker 1>Bitcoin one oh one. I'm Rich Demiro and this is

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<v Speaker 1>Rich on Tech Daily. Okay, how many times have you

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<v Speaker 1>heard someone talk about bitcoin, cryptocurrency or blockchain. These buzzwords

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<v Speaker 1>are being thrown around like everyone knows what they mean,

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<v Speaker 1>but do they really. I figured, you know, what it is, time,

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<v Speaker 1>with so many people investing in this stuff and talking

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<v Speaker 1>about it, to get a little bit more information about it.

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<v Speaker 2>So I talked to Alan Goren.

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<v Speaker 1>He's a financial technology entrepreneur based in Los Angeles. He

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<v Speaker 1>also hosts one of the biggest cryptocurrency investment events every year.

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<v Speaker 1>It's called the Crypto invest Summit. And he told me

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<v Speaker 1>point blank, the average person does not understand And he said,

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<v Speaker 1>the average person who's a bitcoin millionaire probably doesn't understand

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<v Speaker 1>bitcoin for the most part, which is kind of crazy

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<v Speaker 1>because people have made money on this stuff.

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<v Speaker 2>He's all into this stuff.

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<v Speaker 1>He even got his wife to write a book on

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<v Speaker 1>it called Bitcoin for Babies, which is really cute. It's

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<v Speaker 1>available on Amazon. But let's start with the basics. Cryptocurrency.

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<v Speaker 1>This is a new type of digital money that basically

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<v Speaker 1>uses complex math equations instead of bank records to verify transactions.

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<v Speaker 1>And Goren says there's over fifteen hundred different types of

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<v Speaker 1>cryptocurrencies and they all do different things. Now, of course

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<v Speaker 1>we've all heard of bitcoin. That's the most widely known,

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<v Speaker 1>so it's super popular. And he said the reason why

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<v Speaker 1>it's most popular is because it was the first major cryptocurrency.

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<v Speaker 1>It got the most adoption, and it was really revolutionary

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<v Speaker 1>in what it did. Now, like cash, cryptocurrency is anonymous,

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<v Speaker 1>but there's a big difference. Unlike cash, cryptocurrency is independent

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<v Speaker 1>of all banks or government.

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<v Speaker 2>So basically, this is the crazy part.

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<v Speaker 1>Every single little piece of cryptocurrency carries its own record

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<v Speaker 1>of everywhere it's ever been exchanged.

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<v Speaker 2>Yes, that record gets pretty big. And the reason why Goren.

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<v Speaker 1>Says that this is special is because it is called trustless.

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<v Speaker 2>That means you don't have to have a middleman.

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<v Speaker 1>So, if you think about it, the way that you

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<v Speaker 1>normally send money is from bank to bank. The bank says, yes,

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<v Speaker 1>we have this money, we approve it, and the other

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<v Speaker 1>bank says, okay, we've received this money, and we acknowledge

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<v Speaker 1>that this all happens within the currency itself, which is

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<v Speaker 1>pretty amazing when you think about it. So what is

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<v Speaker 1>the biggest thing holding bitcoin back? Well, it is slow

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<v Speaker 1>transaction time. Think about it right now, Every transaction must

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<v Speaker 1>be approved, and it's approved through these computers, a worldwide

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<v Speaker 1>network of peer to peer computers. They call these things minors,

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<v Speaker 1>and anyone can really sign up to be a minor.

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<v Speaker 1>They do all the work and if you solve one

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<v Speaker 1>of these transactions, you're rewarded with a little bitcoin for yourself.

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<v Speaker 1>So you have a lot of people doing this and

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<v Speaker 1>that's how the system propagates.

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<v Speaker 2>That's how the system.

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<v Speaker 1>Actually works because there's always someone out there that wants

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<v Speaker 1>to say, Hey, I want a little tiny piece of

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<v Speaker 1>the money here, so I'm going to solve these transactions

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<v Speaker 1>and that's what really powers the entire system. So why

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<v Speaker 1>are investors going wild over all these new currencies like

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<v Speaker 1>Bitcoin and similar currencies you've heard about, cryptocurrencies like.

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<v Speaker 2>Light coin and ethereum.

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<v Speaker 1>Well, Goren says, there are lots and lots of very

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<v Speaker 1>valuable tools being built on them, and that is what

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<v Speaker 1>the value is all about.

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<v Speaker 2>So where can you spend this money? If you buy

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<v Speaker 2>some bitcoin?

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<v Speaker 1>I actually bought twenty five dollars worth of bitcoin through

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<v Speaker 1>an app called square Cash. It made it really easy,

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<v Speaker 1>but spending bitcoin, it could be a little bit tough

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<v Speaker 1>for the average person. Right now, just a handful of businesses,

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<v Speaker 1>big businesses accept it as a payment type. You're not

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<v Speaker 1>going to find it as a checkout option on Amazon,

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<v Speaker 1>but overstock dot Com is one of the pioneers and

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<v Speaker 1>accepting it, and there's a whole bunch of other companies

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<v Speaker 1>as well. Coinbase is one of the popular websites for

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<v Speaker 1>buying bitcoin. That's probably the most popular, the one that

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<v Speaker 1>you hear over and over. They have a whole list

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<v Speaker 1>of companies where you can spend it as well. But

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<v Speaker 1>if you've been keeping up on the bitcoin news, you

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<v Speaker 1>know that the price fluctuates wildly. So the twenty five

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<v Speaker 1>dollars that I put in there as of today is

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<v Speaker 1>up to twenty eight, but it was down to eighteen just.

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<v Speaker 2>A week ago, so it is pretty crazy.

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<v Speaker 1>It's like an investment, so if you're gonna put money

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<v Speaker 1>on this, you need to understand what you're getting into

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<v Speaker 1>before you plunk down your cash.

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<v Speaker 2>All right, If you want to learn.

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<v Speaker 1>More about bitcoin, you can find some resources and links

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<v Speaker 1>on my website.

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<v Speaker 2>Just go to rich on tech dot tv.

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<v Speaker 1>Hopefully I help you understand a little bit more about

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<v Speaker 1>this emerging currency. It is very interesting and very unique.

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<v Speaker 1>I'm rich Demiro rich on tech.

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<v Speaker 2>I'll talk to you next time.