Please refer to this section if you would like to know more about which parts of the course are for teachers, which are for students and / or entrepreneurs. 

_Reference:

_{ZIGURAT Innovation School. (2019). Crypto vs Banking System. [online] Available at: https://www.e-zigurat.com/innovation-school/blog/crypto-vs-banking-system/ [Accessed 23 Oct. 2020]}

Have you ever wondered what the differences between digital currency and cryptocurrencies are? Digital currencies and cryptocurrencies are not the same thing. Please see the main differences in table below.

Read the original article here: https://coinmetro.com/blog/digital-currency-vs-cryptocurrency-whats-the-difference/

People often describe bitcoin as a decentralized payment system. Erik Voorhees has said that “one of Bitcoin’s most important features—and perhaps its true core innovation—is its decentralized structure.” 

Dividing the world into “centralized” and “decentralized” obscures important features of the bitcoin protocol. A more sophisticated lexicon would leave scope for “distributed” processes. 

To understand the differences, let’s take a look at some familiar payment mechanisms.

_{Reference for this section:} 

_{J. Luther, W. (2018). Centralized, Decentralized, and Distributed Payment Mechanisms. [online] AIER. Available at: https://www.aier.org/article/centralized-decentralized-and-distributed-payment-mechanisms/ [Accessed 26 Oct. 2020]}

Cryptocurrencies are virtual currencies which operate independently of banks and governments but can still be exchanged – or speculated on – just like any physical currency. Launched in 2009, bitcoin was the first decentralised cryptocurrency. Since then, thousands more cryptocurrencies, known as altcoins, have launched.

While bitcoin remains the market leader, cryptocurrencies including bitcoin cash, ether, litecoin, ripple, EOS, stellar (XLM) and NEO could challenge in the future because of rising demand, expanded applications, and technological advances.