Litecoin (LTC) What is Litecoin?Litecoin is the second largest cryptocurrency by market capitalization.It is based on the original Bitcoin algorithm but with some key changes.The aim was to make a crypto currency that would be able to be mined by the average user without ASIC miners being introduced like happened in Bitcoin.In theory this should protect the difficulty growth of the currency and make it more appealing to miners.However, ASIC miners designed to mine Litecoin are available since 2015.Litecoin is the second most popular cryptocurrency and is considered by most to comparable to “Silver” where Bitcoin is “Gold”.As the currency grows in popularity more and more people are using it for gambling and currency trading just as happened when Bitcoin first went mainstream.Finding Litecoin exchanges is more difficult than finding Bitcoin ones.This might lead the internet community to use it more as a currency and less as an investment asset, unlike Bitcoin which has been used as an asset more than as a currency.

Litecoin does not enjoy the same degree of acceptance than Bitcoin.This is one of the reasons why its value is significantly lower than that of Bitcoin.Assuming Litecoin reaches the same degree of acceptance than Bitcoin, all else equal, it is still expected to be significantly cheaper per unit.This is because the total amount of coins to be issued is 4 times greater than that of Bitcoin.This means that Litecoin may serve as some kind of Bitcoin continuation mechanism in the market once a maximum amount of Bitcoins has been mined, although this is not its desired goal.Litecoin’s algorithm is different than that of Bitcoin, to allow Bitcoin miners to mine both at the same time.Ultimately, Litecoin’s status as the second most popular cryptocurrency, offers a huge upside potential that Bitcoin can no longer offer.As Bitcoin gets increasingly difficult to mine and its price increases, Litecoin will still require less computing power to mine, and its upside potential may increase as Bitcoin supply decreases.

This offers a unique opportunity in the cryptocurrency microcosm.In any case, mining offers great reward but poses great risks to investors.Regarding its current level of acceptance, the risk might be higher for those seeking to mine Litecoin.Watch this short video to get a better idea of the basics of Litecoin: [cointable  currency=”LTC” coins=”82,000,000″ change=”2,016″] Resources Litecoin Wiki – litecoin.info Pool – hypernova Exchange – vircurex Learn more about cryptocurrency or check out our list of available altcoins and resources.Just as Bitcoin’s block reward halved in the past, Litecoin will undergo the same same process on Tuesday, August 25th.In anticipation of the halving, the Litecoin Association says that it is a milestone in the cryptocurrency’s 4-year history.Also read: Litecoin Undergoes Changes With Official Branding Guide The association also released a video that elaborates the entire process of Litecoin’s halving, informing that after the halving, Litecoin will reward miners with 25 coins rather than 50 coins per block.

The video also explains that the halving process happens every four years for both Litecoin and Bitcoin, as dictated by their respective protocols.This halving is the first for Litecoin, whose protocol is set to halve the block reward every 840000 blocks.As August 25 approaches, August, miners have started showing concern over the halving.They are worried about how the diminished block reward will affect Litecoin’s price and mining profitability.bitcoin comment sa marcheHowever, the Litecoin Association does not feel worried about the Litecoin’s price, as it believes the price is not paramount to achieving the cryptocurrency’s goal.bitcoin mining rig gh/sFurthermore, the released video shows that as inflation slows, there are fewer coins for the market and everyone’s price rises rather than falls.trade bitcoin dogecoin

However, this issue cannot be overlooked, as Litecoin miners’ concerns are similar to those of Bitcoin miners when Bitcoin underwent its first halving, with the lower block reward affecting the returns on investment for mining rigs.Likewise, Litecoin miners will still have to remake the money they spent on their hardware before they can make profits, which may become more difficult when their block reward incomes are cut in half.The Litecoin Association understands the questions and concerns miners have and attempted to address them by releasing an educative video, which explains that miners who invested in hardware can expect their income to fall by 50 percent.bitcoin atm belgiumThis could mean that continuing to mine may no longer be profitable after miners add in the cost of electricity.bitcoin pool statisticsThe Association says that, in such a situation, miners face two options.steam bitcoin miner

On one hand, the decreased supply growth may raise the Litecoin price and miners will continue to operate as usual.on the other hand, if the price doesn’t rise, miners will no longer be able to operate.If this occurs, the network hash rate will drop as mining declines, resulting in a more centralized network.If the network hash rate drops low enough, the mining difficulty will automatically adjust itself.Then, the miners who had to stop mining will be able to resume.bitcoin farm scam or notHowever, there is no way to actually predict what will happen to the price.bitcoin farm scam or notThough Litecoin has been the most successful altcoin, based on its adoption and acceptance, there is still a concern about the future of the cryptocurrency when it comes to mining, as things have moved passed GPU mining.bitcoin on 4chan

Now, Litecoin mining is done with ASIC machines.However, there is less activity in the new ASIC mining hardware.Additionally, the first generations of miners are already getting obsolete, which leaves only a few miners still mining Litecoin.ASIC manufacturers are cancelling the development of new mining hardware and the Litecoin exchange rate is going down.At the current exchange rates, and if miners do not have more up to date hardware or free electricity, there is not much point to continuing mining with old hardware.Thus, the worry goes beyond the halving of Litecoin’s block reward, as solving the mining profitability problem is complex.If Litecoin mining remains unprofitable for long, a lot of miners will shut down or move to regions with low power tariffs — much like what is happening to Bitcoin mining.This will also mean a rough deal for retail miners, as only big fish would be able to survive.Large data centers will crop up to maintain profitability.If that doesn’t work, then Litecoin just may be doomed.