Every so often, something happens that disrupts an industry. In the case of shopping, it was Amazon. In the case of how we communicate with one another, it was Facebook and other social media sites. Moreover, in terms of how we spend our money, it’s digital currency. While digital currencies may not be used universally across the world, the smart money says that it will be a hugely important player in the future.
It’s important to remember that digital currency is still in its infancy, and still being figured out. As the internet becomes more widespread, it’s reasonable to assume that digital currencies will gain in traction. Even now, though, we’re beginning to feel the effects of the introduction of this type of financial system.
The biggest lesson we’ve learned so far is that things can change; it used to be that all financial matters were centrally managed. Indeed, it was just taken for granted that this was the case. Now, though, we know that it doesn’t have to be like this. Digital currencies operate on a peer-to-peer network, which means it is decentralized.
We’re also learning to rethink financial systems in general. We know that there isn’t one perfect currency or system, and digital currencies — while also not perfect — can bring things to the table that other currencies cannot.
With digital currencies on the rise, it’s worthwhile knowing it as much as you can before it hits the big time. Check out the infographic below, which was produced by Northeastern University.
