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Rene Millman

Rene Millman

Stories by Rene Millman

  • bitcoin-mining c Rodrigo Martinez/Decrypt

    What is Bitcoin Mining and How Does It Work?

    Bitcoin mining is the process by which blocks of transactions are added to the public blockchain and verified. It’s also the process by which new Bitcoin is created—a mechanism that both secures the integrity of the blockchain and incentivizes participation in the network. Miners compete to add new blocks to the blockchain. Mining Bitcoin demands a substantial commitment on the part of miners; it’s a costly, time-consuming task, and one that’s necessary for the cryptocurrency to work and for peo...

  • bitcoin-mining c Rodrigo Martinez/Decrypt

    What Is Bitcoin Mining?

    Bitcoin mining is the process by which blocks of transactions are added to the public blockchain and verified. It’s also the process by which new Bitcoin is created—a mechanism that both secures the integrity of the blockchain and incentivizes participation in the network. Miners compete to add new blocks to the blockchain. Mining Bitcoin demands a substantial commitment on the part of miners; it’s a costly, time-consuming task, and one that’s necessary for the cryptocurrency to work and for peo...

    Courses
    6 min read
    Rene Millman, Stephen Graves

  • What Is Ethereum 2.0? Ethereum's Consensus Layer and Merge Explained

    The long-awaited Ethereum 2.0 upgrade is near. The multi-phased upgrade aims to improve the Ethereum network’s scalability and security through several changes to the network’s infrastructure—most notably, the switch from a proof-of-work (PoW) consensus mechanism to a proof-of-stake (PoS) model. What is Ethereum 2.0? Ethereum 2.0, also known as Eth2 or “Serenity,” is an upgrade to the Ethereum blockchain. The upgrade aims to enhance the speed, efficiency, and scalability of the Ethereum network...

  • PayPal is a popular worldwide online payments system. Image: Shutterstock

    How To Buy Bitcoin With PayPal (2021 Update)

    In November 2020, PayPal announced that all account holders in the U.S. would be able to buy and sell cryptocurrencies including Bitcoin through its platform. The news followed its announcement in October 2020 that it would introduce options for cryptocurrency buying and selling, through a partnership with Paxos Crypto Brokerage. We are pleased to announce that starting today, all of our eligible US customers can now buy, hold and sell #Cryptocurrency directly from their PayPal accounts. We’ve...

    NewsBusiness
    8 min read
    Rene Millman, Jason Nelson
  • Some savers are turning to Bitcoin. Image: Shutterstock

    BlockFi, Celsius, Nexo: What is The Best Crypto Savings Account?

    The majority of cryptocurrency, when it’s bought, is left in online and offline wallets. But why leave it sitting there, inert? What if you wanted to make your cryptocurrency work for you, earning interest, just like fiat money in a bank account? Good news: there are crypto savings accounts that do just that. So, what are they and what accounts are available? What is a crypto savings account?  With many fiat savings accounts earning less than 1% interest (or even 0.1%), many investors are lookin...

    ReviewsOthers
    7 min read
    Rene Millman
  • Ethereum 2.0 is on the horizon (Image: Shutterstock)

    Ethereum: the next five years

    Since its launch on July 30, 2015, Ethereum has risen to become the second-biggest cryptocurrency by market capitalization—second only to Bitcoin. It was the first, and until quite recently, the only general-purpose blockchain, featuring a Turing-complete virtual machine and native programming language able to use code of any algorithmic intricacy. Five years after its launch, there are around 200,000 active developers building on Ethereum, with exciting developments such as decentralized finan...

    Deep DivesLong Reads
    6 min read
    Rene Millman
  • DeFi is now a $3 billion industry (Image: Shutterstock)

    Is Ethereum's DeFi boom sustainable in the long term?

    In recent weeks, we’ve seen a boom in decentralized finance (DeFi). ​Recent data​ have shown that total DeFi users have grown by 23% since the start of June, while over ​$2 billion​ worth of Ethereum and Bitcoin is now locked up in DeFi. And transaction volume across Ethereum-based DeFi dapps has increased by nearly 800% since April. It's driven by the rise of yield farming, in which DeFi platforms offer token incentives in exchange for users' deposits. It’s led to ​unintended consequences​ as...

    Deep DivesLong Reads
    6 min read
    Rene Millman