Guide: Crypto, DEFI, and More

Intro: Bitcoin & Ethereum

Bitcoin (BTC)  

https://bitcoin.org/en/ 

Ethereum (ETH)  

https://ethereum.org/en/ 

So which one is better?

Short Answer: neither.

 

Bitcoin is a traditional blockchain which relies on a shared public ledger to support its network.

Ethereum is a bit more complex and abstract, but essentially is web 3.0. The Ethereum token is the main currency on it’s network and is used as a means of payment or exchange when using ethereum based dapps.

What is a dapp?

A dapp is a decentralized application built on the ethereum blockchain. The first major popularized dapp was https://www.cryptokitties.co/, which actually generated enough traffic that it clogged up the Ethereum network. I bring this up because Eth has done a lot to increase the efficiency of it’s network which has helped birth the newest crypto trend: Defi (see later section for more details).

What is Mining?

Both ETH and BTC have mining.

Both are run on proof of work protocol, miners use their computational power to solve a mathematical problem (finding the hash of a block’s unique header metadata). The first miner to successfully solve the problem (find the hash) then broadcasts that the block has been mined to the entire Ethereum network for other nodes to validate and add the block to the blockchain.

Mining has helped certain companies (NVDA, AMD) grow over the years as well.

Ethereum has an update in the future in which it will switch to a Proof of Stake model, where ETH holders will be able to gain yield if they agree to stake their coins. Staking your coin allows you to have votes on major updates to the ETH network.

https://ethereum.org/en/eth2/

DEFI 

So now that we’ve gone through the basics of the big coins, let’s look at the new trend that’s sweeping crypto……

This chart shows defi’s stunning growth from around $500 million to a high of almost 9 billion of value locked into Defi protocol in just a year. That’s insane growth, but is it sustainable? Only time will tell.

 

UNISWAP


https://uniswap.org/
https://uniswap.org/faq/
https://uniswap.info/

What is Uniswap?

Here’s a quick read to explain it: https://decrypt.co/resources/what-is-uniswap

So how do I make a trade on Uniswap?

1st get a standalone wallet not based on an exchange:

https://wallet.coinbase.com/
https://trustwallet.com/
https://metamask.io/
https://walletconnect.org/wallets

Next head on over to uniswap.info

Type in the search bar what asset symbol you are trying to trade, I chose ETH.

Next you’ll see the trading screen:

Hit trade and you’ll be redirected to the Uniswap app where you can swap between most cryptocurrencies:

Next connect your wallet:

Once you select your wallet provider (my recommendations are Metamask, Wallet Connect enabled wallets, or CB Wallet) a QR code pops up, you’ll want to hop over to your mobile wallet and hit wallet connect or wallet link in coinbase wallet to connect. Hit connect to finish.

Once connected your screen on uniswap.org should look like this:

Make sure you have ETH in your wallet to complete the transaction. I usually hold $50-100 in ETH to make sure I can cover fees.

You can choose assets from various lists to swap:

Once you’ve decided on your swap hit swap on the site, then confirm on your mobile wallet.

This whole process would take 10 minutes or less, usually less.

If your transaction becomes stuck in a pending state you will need to wait till it times out. Pending transactions happen when you do not pay a high enough fee to get your transaction through, this can also happen when there is higher than normal network activity.

Click on the gear on the top right of the page to change the settings, generally I would keep it at 1% but the network has been crazy at the moment. 

 

Well there’s a quick guide to BTC, ETH, Defi, and Uniswap. Below I've provided some resources for things I've mentioned in the above guide.

 

Read:

https://www.coindesk.com/five-years-in-defi-now-defines-ethereum

https://defiprime.com/ethereum

 

Stats:

https://defipulse.com/

 

Coin Rankings:

https://coinmarketcap.com/defi/

https://www.coingecko.com/en/defi

 

Resources:

https://yieldfarming.info/

 

Apps:

https://zapper.fi/dashboard

https://app.zerion.io/

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