Crypto basics: wallets, keys and digital assets

Learn crypto basics with practical Crypto Loop Academy guides, clear explanations and source-linked references.

• Bitcoin: scarcity, settlement and trade-offs

  Bitcoin is often introduced as “digital gold,” but that phrase hides important mechanics. This article explains how Bitcoin’s issuance schedule works, what proof of work does and does not guarantee, why confirmations matter, how chain reorganisations can happen, how fees fit into settlement, and…

• Ethereum and the programmable ledger

  Ethereum and the programmable ledger

• What you actually own when you own crypto

  What you actually own when you own crypto

• Wallets, recovery phrases and operational safety

  Wallets, recovery phrases and operational safety

• How a blockchain transaction becomes final

  A blockchain transaction does not become final in one step. It moves through a chain of checks: it is signed, broadcast, placed in the network’s waiting area, selected into a block, and then protected by additional confirmations or protocol rules that make reversal increasingly difficult. This ar…

• Stablecoins are liabilities, not cash

  Stablecoins are often marketed as cash-like, but economically and legally they are usually liabilities: promises to pay, redeem, or maintain a value target under stated conditions. Understanding that distinction matters because different stablecoin designs shift risk between the issuer, the reser…

• Custody: choosing which risks to accept

  Custody is not one choice between safety and convenience; it is a set of risks to allocate deliberately. This article explains exchange custody, self-custody, multisig, segregation, bankruptcy claims, withdrawal tests, and the ways counterparty dependence shows up in practice.

• DeFi lending without the yield mythology

  DeFi lending is often described through yields, but the mechanics matter more than the headline rate. This primer explains how overcollateralised lending usually works, why utilisation pushes variable rates up and down, how oracle-based liquidations are triggered, where bad debt can come from, an…

• Bridges and the cost of crossing chains

  Bridges and the cost of crossing chains

• Reading a token's supply and incentives

  Reading a token's supply and incentives