Developed in 2011 as a fork of the Bitcoin network, Litecoin aimed to improve upon Bitcoin's shortcomings. It was the first altcoin, and its goal was to offer a decentralized peer-to-peer (P2P) currency with faster transaction processing times and lower fees than Bitcoin.
Built with payments in mind, Litecoin outperforms Bitcoin in terms of transaction speed and confirmation time. While Bitcoin can process approximately five transactions per second, Litecoin has a capacity of 56 transactions per second. The network's confirmation time is also significantly shorter, taking approximately two minutes and 20 seconds compared to Bitcoin's, of nearly 10 minutes per block.
Even after over a decade, Litecoin remains committed to providing users with low-cost, private, secure, and borderless payment solutions. Its vision is to enable individuals to send payments anywhere in the world at any time, making it a practical and accessible digital currency for everyday transactions. Litecoin's usage as a payment method has increased over the years, with merchants, including the American Red Cross, Newegg, and Twitch, accepting LTC as payment.
How does Litecoin work
Litecoin was created from the original Bitcoin source code. That said, it has several differences, which make it faster, cheaper, and more accessible. Here are the components that make Litecoin different:
Scrypt hashing
Litecoin was launched with a unique algorithmic architecture called Scrypt. Scrypt uses less processing power than Bitcoin’s SHA-256 algorithm, lowering the entry barriers for miners and promoting network decentralization. Scrypt also protects Litecoin from potential attacks by miners.
SegWit (Segregated Witness)
SegWit was initially proposed for Bitcoin but was first adopted by the Litecoin network. It separates the witness data (digital signature data) from the transaction data, allowing for more transactions to be included in each block and increasing the overall capacity and scalability of the network. The successful implementation of SegWit on Litecoin served as a testbed and paved the way for its subsequent adoption on the Bitcoin network.
MimbleWimble upgrade
Litecoin also launched its highly anticipated MimbleWimble upgrade, which allows for anonymous transactions on the network, similar to other private networks like Zcash (ZEC) and Monero (XMR). MimbleWimble's integration with Litecoin via extension blocks (MWEB) allowed users to conceal transaction information, thereby increasing privacy. The upgrade was released in January 2022 and activated in May.
The MimbleWimble upgrade was first suggested in October 2019 in two Litecoin improvement proposals. Then, in October 2020, the network launched the first MimbleWimble testnet. According to the Litecoin Foundation, the upgrade enhances the network's scalability since the amount of data stored on-chain reduces fungibility.
LTC price and tokenomics
LTC has a capped supply model, with a maximum supply 84 million. This specific cap was chosen so that the last LTC would be mined in 2142. Like BTC, LTC operates on a Proof of Work (PoW) consensus mechanism, producing new tokens exclusively through mining. Every four years, LTC undergoes a halving to reduce the rewards earned by miners.
LTC has a wide range of use cases. As the native token of the network, LTC is used to pay transaction fees. LTC can also be used outside the network as a medium of exchange, purchasing goods and services or exchanging for other digital assets, such as non-fungible tokens (NFTs).
About the founders
Litecoin was founded in 2011 by Charlie Lee, an MIT graduate and former software engineer at Google. Lee played a key role in the development and launch of Litecoin. In 2013, he joined Coinbase, one of the largest cryptocurrency exchanges, where he served as the Director of Engineering. In 2017, Lee made the decision to leave Coinbase to focus on the full-time development and advancement of Litecoin.
Lee is also the director of the Litecoin Foundation, a Singapore-based non-profit organization that works towards the growth and adoption of LTC. In December 2017, Lee sold his entire stake in Litecoin, saying it was a conflict of interest for him to talk about the cryptocurrency while influencing it.
Since its inception, the Litecoin team has grown and expanded to include more core developers. This dedicated team works on improving and maintaining the Litecoin network, ensuring its security, scalability, and overall functionality.
