OKX Blockchain 60 Lessons | Episode 35: What Impact Has Cryptocurrency Brought?

Hello everyone, I'm Xiao K. Today, we're going to wrap up the cryptocurrency section and talk about "What impact has cryptocurrency brought us"?

Many people's perception of cryptocurrency remains at "no intrinsic value" or just a "speculative tool." But in reality, the concept of cryptocurrency was first proposed before 1996 and has developed to this day, having a tremendous impact on our society. It has produced two key influences.

First, the most直观的就是cryptocurrency的发展促进了区块链技术诞生. cryptocurrency的概念最初是大卫·乔姆在1985年发表的论文《Securitywithout identification: transaction systems to make big brother obsolete》中提出的. 在他阐述了不可追踪的密码学网络Payment系统和cryptocurrency的构想之后, 大量的密码学天才开始尝试将这个概念落地为现实.

From 1990 to 2007, numerous cryptocurrency payment systems emerged, including Adam Back's Hash Cash, Wei Dai's B-Money, Nick Szabo's Bit Gold, and more. Although they all failed, the core technologies of blockchain were gradually沉淀了出来, until the emergence of Bitcoin in 2008, which brought about a systematic blockchain technology.

After that, with Ethereum officially launching in 2015, it unveiled the limitless possibilities of blockchain and promoted this technology to various industries, leading to the current brilliance of blockchain. So, without cryptocurrency, the blockchain industry today might still be waiting quietly in some small corner!

Besides that, the second impact cryptocurrency has brought us is advancing social and financial payment progress. Why do we say this? Don't underestimate the power of cryptocurrency.

We all know that cashless payments are definitely more advanced than cash payments, but even in our country where cashless payment services are highly developed, it's still impossible to completely get rid of cash. Services like Alipay and WeChat Pay are more accurately described as electronic cash, as they fundamentally still require bank cash for settlement.

But cryptocurrency is different. The essence of cryptocurrency is information, and the speed of information transmission is always faster than cash settlement, especially in cross-border payments. For example, if we purchase an online service product from the US while in China, we would need a US bank account. Even if that's not required, our payment would need to go through the SWIFT international financial network for settlement, taking 2 to 5 days—this is all very cumbersome.

However, if that website supports cryptocurrency payments, we can directly transfer using cryptocurrency. The underlying blockchain system of cryptocurrency will automatically record this transfer, requiring far less time and cost compared to traditional payments. This is because such transactions are essentially the transmission of information. That's why many countries are currently developing cryptocurrency, as it helps improve the internationalization of their domestic currencies.

Additionally, cryptocurrency also makes data tracking easier, which is of great help in anti-money laundering, preventing illegal trading, and other areas—these are all tangible impacts brought by cryptocurrency.

Overall, cryptocurrency for us is a product born from technological innovation. In its early days, it may have been as faint as a single spark, but with people's participation and the passage of time, it has grown ever stronger, ultimately returning this force to the world and driving it toward something better and brighter.

Disclaimer

This article may contain product-related content not applicable to your region. This article is solely dedicated to providing general information and does not accept responsibility for any factual errors or omissions. This article represents only the author's personal viewpoint and does not represent the viewpoint of OKX. This article does not intend to provide any of the following advice, including but not limited to: (i) investment advice or investment recommendations; (ii) offers or solicitations to purchase, sell, or hold digital assets; or (iii) financial, accounting, legal, or tax advice. Holding digital assets (including stablecoins) involves high risk and prices may fluctuate significantly or even become worthless. You should carefully consider whether trading or holding digital assets is suitable for you based on your financial situation. For questions regarding your specific circumstances, please consult your legal/tax/investment professional. The information contained in this article (including market data and statistical information, if any) is for general reference purposes only. Although we have taken all reasonable precautions in preparing such data and charts, we do not accept any responsibility for any factual errors or omissions expressed herein. © 2025 OKX. This article may be reproduced or distributed in its entirety, and excerpts of 100 words or less from this article may be used, provided that such use is non-commercial. Any reproduction or distribution of the full article must prominently state: "This article is copyrighted © 2025 OKX, used with permission." Permitted excerpts must cite the article title and include the source, for example, "Article Title, [Author Name (if applicable)], © 2025 OKX." Some content may have been generated or assisted by artificial intelligence (AI) tools. Derivative works and other uses of this article are not permitted.

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