Getting Started: Building Your Crypto Currency Knowledge
I was intimidated by both the amount and the complexity of the information when I began my personal investigation into Bitcoin/crypto currency/crypto assets. The crypto asset space is multi-disciplinary mash up of cryptography, finance, game theory, economics, day trading, asset allocation, software engineering, policy and law. To make the crypto asset world even more complex, it is full of scammers and hackers who are working 24/7 to rip you off.
This means it takes quite a bit of self-education to start your understanding of the open public blockchain ecosystem and crypto asset investing. While self-education can be intimidating, without knowledge you are leaving yourself open to 1) missing out on what might be the greatest wealth generating opportunity since the early days of the internet and 2) being ripped off by malicious operators. Plus, learning new stuff is fun and you will soon be able to impress friends with your crypto knowledge at cocktail parties.
Here is a break down by topic area of material that I found useful. Lots of these topics are technical so it will be up to you to dive in to increase your knowledge. Buckle up and enjoy your crypto assets / open public blockchain learning adventure.
Explaining Bitcoin and Blockchain:
Explain Bitcoin like I’m a five-year-old — simplified explanation of Bitcoin and blockchain ledgers. Useful to help you explain Bitcoin to your friends and family
Great video on how the blockchain and bitcoin work — detailed technical explanation. Helpful to watch more than once.
Video on How Bitcoin works — non-technical explanation
Beginners guide to Bitcoin, Ethereum and Blockchain technology — Treasure trove of information on Bitcoin, Blockchain, Ethereum
Ultimate beginners bitcoin guide — addtional good non technical explanations of Bitcoin and blockchain
News, Information, Gossip:
Crypto Compare — Great site providing knowledge and comparing exchanges, coins, wallets, mining, businesses and other related info
Bitcoin Magazine — source of detailed articles on developments happening in the crypto asset world
Blockchain Info — great stats and charts for Bitcoin data including viewing actual transaction data on the Bitcoin Blockchain
Etherscan — great stats and charts for Ethereum data including viewing actual transaction data on the Etherum Blockchain
Coin market cap — stats and trends on thousands of crypto currencies/crypto tokens
Technical material and Technical Ecosystems:
The Bitcoin Whitepaper by Satoshi Nakamoto (this paper is what started the entire Bitcoin party)
Smart Contracts — Building Blocks for Digital Markets by Nick Szabo computer scientist, legal scholar and cryptographer known for his research in digital contracts and digital currency
The Ethereum Whitepaper — by Vitalik Buterin co-founder of Ethereum and co-founder of Bitcoin Magazine
Bitcoin’s Academic Pedigree — by Arvind Narayanan & Jeremy Clark Discussion of how the foundational technical components of Bitcoin and blockchain originated from the academic literature of the 1980s and ‘90s
Fat Protocols — by Joel Monegro crypto currency investing thought leader. Write up on how value will accrue to blockchains (i.e. fat protocols) in the future vs today’s web apps like google/amazon/facebook
Crypto Investor Blogs and Podcasts
The Crypto Currency Investor — by Ari Paul Chief Investment Officer (CIO) of crypto asset hedge fund BlockTower Capital
Hash Power 1,2,3 — Fantastic pod cast discussing blockchains, crypto currency investing and what the future holds. Hosted by Patrick O’Shaughnessy and populated by a “who’s who” of crypto thought leaders. Well worth your time to listen to each episode
12 Steps to Keep you Bitcoins Safe — Summary of techniques for keeping your Bitcoins safe. Applicable to other Crypto Assets in addition to Bitcoin.
Crypto Assets, Treasure Maps And The Wild West — By Edward Tremblay Discussion on security, threats and approaches to securing your crypto asset holdings
Beginner’s Guide Series on Crypto Assets — Linda Xie has put together summary comparisons of a number of Crypto Assets including Ethereum, Zcash, Monero, etc.
Compilation of Bitcoin Resources — Jameson Lopp’s comprehensive links to all things Bitcoin related (Video, Courses, Documentaries, News, History, Discussion)
Compilation of Blockchain and Cryptocurrency Resources — Great list of resources complied by legendary VC firm Andreessen Horowitz
Exchanges and Markets:
Coinbase — Beginner friendly exchange for buying Bitcoin, Ethereum and Litecoin
GDAX — Coinbase’s exchange for more serious traders (much lower buy/sell fees but more complicated to use than Coinbase)
List of Crypto Exchanges — reviews of a large number of crypto exchanges
Books:
Cryptoassets: The Innovative Investor’s Guide to Bitcoin and Beyond — by Chris Burniske and Jack Tatar. Excellent book describing crypto assets like Bitcoin, how to value crypto assets and how crypto assets fit in an individual’s investment portfolio
The Internet of Money — by Andreas M. Antonopoulos — Bitcoin, open blockchain expert and tremendous public speaker . Book describes the “why” of Bitcoin and how it has the power to transform finance, government, personal privacy, etc. Andreas has many Bitcoin related books published on Amazon.
Digital Gold — Dramatic and highly entertaining story about how Bitcoin was created and the characters that created it.
Courses:
Coursera — Bitcoin and Crypto currency Technologies course
Khan Academy — What is Bitcoin course
Udemy — Bitcoin or How I Learned to stop worrying and love crypto
Social networking and meetups:
Meetup.com — Find local crypto currency and blockchain enthusiasts meetings for discussions and mutual education. I found meetup.com a great way to meet likeminded people who can help each understand crypto assets and related opportunities.
Reddit, Slack, Telegram — Social media hosting detailed chat discussions on crypto currencies and blockchains. Search on topics you are interested in and get involved with online groups.
Twitter — click on my twitter profile/following to check out a list of people I believe are influential crypto asset thought leaders and who consistently have interesting Twitter posts.
