Monero (XRM) is considered to be among the most privacy-focused cryptocurrency in the world. While some other crypto coins on the market offer cheaper transactions, some are faster; Monero’s selling point is unique because it is entirely anonymous.
Thanks to high-end cryptography, the sender, the receiver, and the amount of Monero sent are impossible to see by a third-party. Because of this, the crypto coin has found a use in evading international sanctions by the likes of North Korea and is used as a payment method in numerous other situations.
What Makes Monero Different From the Other Crypto Coins?
Monero has some functionalities and features that are similar to other cryptocurrencies. For instance, it is an open-source project that is entirely permissionless, and there’s no authority that can stop you from using it.
This means that those with no access to modern banking can participate in a digital economy in a way they never could before – all they need is an internet connection and a device to connect to it. Here are a few functionalities that make Monero unique.
Privacy
The main feature that gives Monero much more value is its privacy functions. It doesn’t allow for anyone to link you to a Monero cryptocurrency transaction, making it a favorite for those concerned with privacy and security.
Fungibility
Another valuable feature Monero has, relates to privacy and is its fungibility. For instance, it is possible to track Bitcoin (BTC) transactions from a user to another. Depending on the way a user utilizes Bitcoin, you might not be able to tell their identity, but you can follow each BTC they send from address to address.
Thanks to the advanced privacy functionalities of Monero, no one can identify the transactions the coins were involved in. Therefore, it would be entirely impossible to link a Monero coin to a transaction carried out in the past.
Dynamic Scalability
An area Monero attempted to improve on Bitcoin is the scalability function. Scalability refers to the way the network is able to grow in relation to demand. Blockchain-based crypto coins are by definition limited in size, with Bitcoin having a 1MB block size limit. This means that only 1MB of transaction data can be held by a block, which is mined every few minutes on the network. When the network is filled with transactions, the blockchain gets clogged, and only the operations with the most enormous fees attached get to complete first.
However, Monero is different. There is no preset block size limit on the Monero blockchain, which allows for more transaction data in each block. However, a downside of this is that spammers can fill the network with operations. To tackle this, Monero developers introduced a block reward-penalty function. This new system discourages spam transactions since miners won’t mine blocks displaying huge penalties.
The Bottom Line
In a world where almost nothing seems to provide genuine privacy anymore, there is definitely a call for such privacy-focused cryptocurrencies as Monero.
Monero s the potential to enable people to transact almost instantly across the world without needing permission from any authority or government. In countries with oppressive regimes, this coin could be used as a potent tool in the quest for freedom. Not only that, but Monero can also be used by governments to get around international sanctions. Still, for these reasons, it is very likely that the cryptocurrency could be attacked by other governments who are not keen on the concept of a completely private means of payment for use by anyone. How successful such restraint on Monero would be will be an exciting test of crypto coins’ anti-fragile functions.