There is a popular belief among people that cryptocurrencies are private and untraceable, explaining their association with illegal transactions. In truth though, this is not the case, for example with bitcoin, all transactions are recorded on a public ledger (blockchain) which allows for anyone to view and verify transactions. Monero, however, is not like bitcoin but is rather focused on untraceability. According to Monero’s website, “Monero is a secure, private, untraceable currency.” The currency uses a special cryptography to ensure privacy making all transactions untraceable. At the time of press Monero is at $89.18 with a market cap of $1,457,638,595, and although this altcoin is still miles away from bitcoin, many are believing this coin could be better bitcoin. Monero’s Background This open-source cryptocurrency was created as a fork of Bytecoin in April 2014 when it was BitMonero. The original author was Nicolas van Saberhagen, who envisioned a cryptocurrency that would be secure, private and most importantly untraceable. It is for this very reason that it has attracted so many users. Currently, the Monero project has more than 180 contributors. The development is very committed and is actively looking for new ways to make the project better. Monero is based on the CryptoNight proof-of-work hash algorithm which possesses a difference from other public ledger cryptocurrencies by ensuring that transactions are untraceable. Concept Behind Monero To ensure that all transactions are untraceable the Monero financial system splits all amount being transferred into multiple amounts and treats each amount as a separate transaction. Controversial Use Of Monero Because of its untraceable characteristic, Monero has attracted unlawful users who look to the coin to finance illegal activities. This coin has been in the past criticized as a promoter for illegal activities since it has become the asset of choice for drug dealers and kidnappers who find it to be safer for them. This year there was a roar over the popularity of altcoins like Monero which are privacy-focused, making them even more popular than bitcoin. However, the team behind it has defended it saying it was designed to ensure it is fast. Advantages Of Monero The first advantage with Monero is that mining is made easier. For example, bitcoin was designed to be mined by PCs. unfortunately, Satoshi Nakamoto, did not expect ASICs could mine. These types of hardware have a lot of power and they have taken up the industry, making it almost impossible to mine using PCs. But, in the case of Monero, the algorithm is unique in that mining using PCs and ASICs are the same. Verification of transactions are fast, making the system extra efficient, it also means it is very easy to mine, and more likely to get adopted. Monero blocks are produced every two minutes. Unlike Bitcoin where new blocks get discovered every 10 minutes, Monero produces them every 2 minutes. The system is also designed to accommodate high transactions unlike bitcoin which delays transactions. In case of high transaction volumes, Monero automatically accommodates high transaction volume.