Litecoin is a peer-to-peer cryptocurrency created by Charlie Lee. It was created based on the Bitcoin protocol but differs in terms of the hashing algorithm used. Litecoin uses the memory intensive Scrypt proof of work mining algorithm. Scrypt allows consumer-grade hardware such as GPU to mine those coins. Why Litecoin? Litecoin is a cryptocurrency that has evolved from Bitcoin after its own popularity in the industry, this alternative, or ‘altcoin’ has emerged to allow investors to diversify their digital currency package, according to Investopedia. Litecoin is one of the most prominent altcoins and was created by former Google employee and Director of Engineering at Coinbase, Charlie Lee. Litecoin was the first to alter Bitcoin and the most significant difference is that it takes 2.5 minutes for Litecoin to generate a block, or transaction, in comparison to Bitcoin's 10 minutes. ‘While this matters little to traders, miners who use hardware to run Bitcoin's network cannot switch over to Litecoin. This keeps bigger mining conglomerates away from Litecoin because they cannot easily optimize their profits by swapping to another coin, contributing to a more decentralized experience. Litecoin also has bigger blocks, and more coins in circulation, making it more affordable and swift when transacting,’ Investopedia explained. As explained above, Litecoin can transact a lot faster than Bitcoin, but there are also a number of other characteristics that investors need to know before trading. Litecoin can handle higher volumes of transactions because of the capability of transacting faster and if Bitcoin attempted to transact on the scale of its altcoin, a code update would be needed. However, Litecoin’s blocks would be larger, but with more ‘orphaned blocks'. The faster block time of litecoin reduces the risk of double spending attacks - this is theoretical in the case of both networks having the same hashing power. Litecoin Technical Details: The transaction confirmation time taken for Litecoin is about 2.5 minutes on average (as compared to Bitcoin's 10 minutes). The Litecoin network is scheduled to cap at 84 million currency units. Litecoin has inspired many other popular alternative currencies (eg. Dogecoin) because of its Scrypt hashing algorithm in order to prevent ASIC miners from mining those coins. However it is said that by the end of this year, Scrypt ASIC will enter the mass market.

A Litecoin wallet is a digital or physical tool that stores your public and private keys. These keys are needed to access and control your crypto assets. The wallet doesn't store the actual coins but lets you interact with the blockchain. It’s the gateway to sending, receiving, and safeguarding your Litecoin.

Open your Litecoin wallet and select “Send.” Paste or scan the recipient’s wallet address, enter the amount of LTC, and confirm the transaction. Once confirmed, the recipient sees the funds in their wallet.

Go to the “Receive” section in your Litecoin wallet. Copy your wallet address or use the QR code. Share it with the sender. After the transaction is broadcast and confirmed on the blockchain, your wallet shows the updated balance of LTC.

It’s a unique string of letters and numbers linked to your wallet’s public key. Others use this address to send you LTC. Think of it like your crypto account number; it tells the network where to send the funds, but it doesn’t give access to your private key.

To securely store your Litecoin, consider using a hardware wallet like Cypherock X1. It splits your private key into five cryptographic parts across secure components, ensuring your funds stay safe even if you lose one, two, or even three parts.

Yes, modern hardware wallets like Cypherock X1 support thousands of coins and tokens, including Litecoin. You can manage your entire crypto portfolio across multiple wallets and blockchains seamlessly.

With Cypherock X1, your private key is split into five secure parts. As long as you have two parts of the hardware components (an X1 Card or the X1 Vault), you can recover your Litecoin even if the other three parts are lost.

Look for tamper-proof smartcards, EAL6+ certification, offline verification, and decentralized key storage. Cypherock X1 offers all of these, ensuring bank-grade security for your Litecoin.