Verge is a Crypto Currency, built with a fork of Bitcoin but with an emphasis on privacy which utilizes anonymity-centric networks such as TOR and i2P to make sure the IP addresses of it’s users are obfuscated and the transactions are completely untraceable. Similar to other privacy-focused coins like DASH and Monero, it aims to bring security and privacy to users of crypto coins. We believe that true privacy is one of the killer features of crypto, we know that bitcoin is not truly anonymous because there is a permanent ledger of which addresses have transacted together, so all it takes is for a user to personally identify themselves with one address ( such as via an exchange or with a delivery address ) and their entire history of transactions become public knowledge.

Verge ( XVG ) started life as DogeCoinDark back in 2014 which makes it one of the older anonymous coins, when it was launched it’s goal was to be a fun anonymous digital currency, in February 2016 it was rebranded to become Verge.

Verge uses Proof of Work consensus to secure the network and you are able to mine using 5 different algorythms : Scrypt, X17, Lyra2rev2, myr-groestl and blake2s which was by design to enable as many people as possible with different mining setups to have equal access to earning the coins.

There are 16.5 billion coins in circulation which keeps the price per coin low, which could make it more attractive to using it in future as a functioning currency. Even so, the currency has an impressive rise in value this year from $0.000019 in January to $0.0039 currently ( as of 30th August 2017 ).

So far, development has been impressive on Verge with the developer maintaining a detailed roadmap outlining when new features will be arriving and also a “Black” paper which goes into the technical details behind it. Verge has one main developer, Sunerok on the project and 10 other contributors.

Why is Privacy Important?

Some people may associate coins which offer privacy protection with the “dark” web and other illegal activities, and while there is no denying that that is one of use of these types of currencies, there are other matters to consider.

Imagine for instance, you are a business accepting payment in Crypto currencies – your entire history of payments received is publicly available for everyone to view – competitors are able to see your cashflow, payments in and out. If you are a supplier to the business in question, you are also able to see your balance and also which other suppliers you are working with, this could be beneficial to them in price negotiations etc.

For the same reason, if you personally transact with someone online – they are able to see your wallet balance and history. For good reason people do not around transmitting their private bank balances publicly. If that person knows you personally or has your address ( for delivery goods etc ) then a criminal might seek to steal funds from you by forcing you to hand over the private keys to your wallet.

Privacy is something that will become more important as we move forward, it’s already beginning to be taken more seriously with Ethereum looking to introduce ZK-SNARKS to verify transactions while protecting a user’s privacy and Stratis introducing their Breeze Wallet with Tumblebit functionality to provide anonymity for Bitcoin users.

I truly believe that privacy is basic human right, despite what some governments will try and have you believe, and that expecting privacy does not mean you are a criminal or “have something to hide”.

Verge Wallets

There are a number of Desktop and Mobile wallets available to download from the official website for Windows, Mac, Linux, Tor, Android, Raspberry PI and more. You can speed up your install by downloading the blockchain here.

How to Buy Verge

Now you have your wallet setup, you will want to purchase some Verge to hold in it. You are not able to purchase XVG with “Fiat” currency so you will need to first purchase another currency – the easiest to buy are Bitcoin or Ethereum which you can do at Coinbase using a bank transfer or debit / credit card purchase and then swap that for XVG at Changelly or Binance.

Register at Coinbase

For first time buyers of crypto currency, we recommend that you use Coinbase to make your first purchase – its easy to use, fully regulated by the US government so you know it is one of the safest and most reputable places to purchase cryptocurrency from. Coinbase offers the ability to purchase Bitcoin, Litecoin and Ethereum with a credit or debit card or by sending a bank transfer. The fees are higher for cards but you will receive your currency instantly.

You will have to carry out some identity verification when signing up as they have to adhere to strict financial guidelines. Make sure you use our link to signup you will be credited with $10 in free bitcoin when you make your first purchase of $100.

To get started, click the “Sign up” button where you will be taken to a registration form where you will need to enter your name, email and choose a password.

Coinbase will then send you a link via email to verify your email account, once you click the link in the email you will be taken to a verification page. You must then add your phone number and upload a photo of your ID – this can be a passport, driving license etc. You also have to add your payment details, so you can add your bank account or a debit or credit card as required – after a short period your account will then be verified and you can then make your first purchase.

Purchase Ethereum or Bitcoin

For this guide, we will be purchasing Ethereum to swap for our target cryptocurrency. The reason for this is that it has far cheaper fees than bitcoin for sending and the transaction also happens a lot faster. So in Coinbase, visit the “Buy / Sell” tab at the top, select “Ethereum”, choose your payment method and enter the amount you wish to purchase – you can either enter a US Dollar amount or a number of Ether.

You will then be asked to confirm your transaction, if paying with a card you might have to complete a verification with your card provider. Once that’s complete, your Ethererum will be added to your account.

Purchase XVG at Binance

If you are familiar with how exchanges work, the one we recommend for purchasing Verge is Binance. It’s easy to signup and you get 2 BTC worth of withdrawals each day without having to submit ID verification, all you need to do is send your BTC or ETH to your account there and swap for Verge. For more information read our complete guide to Binance here.

Using Changelly

For beginners, we recommend using Changelly.

The next stage, is to use the Changelly website to swap your Ether for XVG. Use this link and enter how many Eth you will like to convert and it will show you how many Verge you will receive in return, if you are happy then go ahead and click the green “Exchange” Button.

On the next screen you will be prompted to register an account which you can do so by using a social media account or entering your email address.

Once that’s done, you will be taken to a page showing the transaction details – check it over and make sure the amounts are correct. Once you are happy click the green “Next” button.

On the next screen, you will be prompted for your Verge wallet address where you will receive the coins. Paste this into the box and click the green “Next” button.

You will then be shown a final confirmation screen, again, make sure all details are correct before proceeding.

Changelly will then provide you will an address to which you mush send your Ether, so copy the address that they give you and then head back to your coinbase account.

Send Your Ethereum or Bitcoin

In Coinbase, click the “Accounts” and Select your Ethereum Wallet on the left and then click “Send”.

Enter the address that Changelly gave you before.

Click “Continue” and then you may have to confirm the transaction with your email or phone if you have 2 factor authentication enabled.

The transaction will now be sent over the Ethereum network and will take a short while to arrive – you can check in your Changelly account where it will notify you of the following steps :

Waiting for payment Exchanging Sending to your wallet

Once it’s complete a confirmation message will appear on the screen saying “Transaction Complete”. You can now check your Verge Wallet where you can confirm you now own your XVG.

Mining Software

Verge is pretty easy to mine on your GPU no matter what setup you have got. Here are the download links for the different types of software.

( I have had to remove direct links as Google classes these as malware software, due to the fact that mining software is sometimes included in malware which runs in on your computer without the owners knowledge. You can find the correct Github listings in Google.

with Nvidia GPU: x17:

SGMiner for x17 (Windows)

Source Code for Linux

blake2s:

CCminer Blake2s (Windows)

CCMiner Source Code for Linux

lyra2rev2:

CCMiner for Lyra2Rev2 (Windows)

CCMiner Source Code for Linux

myr-groestl:

CCMiner for Myr-Groestl (Windows)

CCMiner Source Code for linux

scrypt:

CCMiner for Scrypt (Windows)

CCMiner Source Code for Linux

Mining Pools

Here are the available mining pools for each type of algorithm you wish to use.

Scrypt

Myr-Groestl

Lyra2Rev2

Blake2s

x17

Conclusion

I like Verge quite a lot, there was no flashy ICO or major launch – just one developer and a team of volunteers working together to create a privacy-focused crypto currency to be used in the real world. The price per coin is still very low so it may be worth adding some to your portfolio if you believe that the public will trend more towards privacy coins in the future, whether it can go on to compete against the likes of Monero, Dash, PIVX and Z-Cash remains to be seen but it may be worth spreading your portfolio around a few of these coins.