Bitcoin vs Monero: A Comparison of Key Features and Latest News

Introduction 

Bitcoin– the first crypto enabled individuals to make payments and control over their funds with better security and no involvement of centralized third parties. However, most crypto blockchain ledgers are publicly available, and transactions can be viewed by anyone, which becomes a hurdle in user’s privacy. Monero is one of the privacy coins that provides users with enhanced privacy and lets them remain anonymous when transferring funds. In this article, we will compare Bitcoin and Monero, their key features, and more.

What is Bitcoin? 

Bitcoin, the original gangster (OG) of the crypto space, holds the title of the largest crypto asset by market capitalization, with a massive following of supporters. It was first introduced in 2008 by an anonymous group or individual, Satoshi Nakamoto, as an alternative to traditional currencies. As per its whitepaper, Bitcoin is a peer-to-peer form of money that enables online payment transfers directly from one party to another without needing to pass through any intermediary or financial institution. 

At its core, Bitcoin works through a decentralized blockchain that is a distributed ledger where all executed transactions are recorded and encrypted with cryptography technology. These transactions are verified and validated by a peer-to-peer network of computers called miner nodes, which solve a complex mathematical puzzle to create a block and receive block rewards in return. 

While Bitcoin initially gained popularity as a means of storing value aligned with Satoshi’s vision, it’s now being adopted as a medium for purchasing goods and services worldwide.

Rae More: Bitcoin vs Cardano

Key Features of Bitcoin (BTC) 

• As Bitcoin is based on a decentralized blockchain network, there’s no centralized government or intermediary controlling its work.
• Bitcoin ledger is publicly viewable and can be verified by anyone, which ensures there is no double spending and fraud in the network.
• Transactions on Bitcoin are cryptographically encrypted, ensuring the security and privacy of transactions and users’ funds.
• Some people also see Bitcoin as a “digital gold” thanks to its limited maximum supply of 21 million bitcoins, scarcity, and a deflationary mechanism called halving. 
• Transactions on Bitcoin are pseudonymous, which means the personal identities of users are not directly revealed. However, transactions and wallet addresses of Bitcoin can be tracked by anyone due to its open-source nature. 

Follow: Bitcoin Halving Countdown Live

Bitcoin Latest News 

• Lighting Network, a layer-2 scaling solution for Bitcoin, has announced a set of Artificial Intelligence (AI) tool frameworks that will help users to interact with the Bitcoin network sending and receiving the crypto.

Announcing a new set of tools to build Lightning⚡and #bitcoin-powered AI products for a global audience.

Using L402, a standard for API authentication with LN payments, and @langchainAI, a simplified AI app framework, we are opening up #AI4All! 🤖🌎https://t.co/EQseanCurv

— Lightning Labs⚡️🍠 (@lightning) July 6, 2023

• Various financial institutions, including BlackRock, Invesco, Wisdom Tree, and others, have filed applications for approval of Bitcoin spot ETF in the United States.

$10 trillion BlackRock in July 2022: Traditional 60/40 stock bond portfolios “won’t work anymore.”

Today, they’re seeking approval for a spot #Bitcoin ETF.

The times are changing 💥 pic.twitter.com/R14Dtd0lkN

— Bitcoin Magazine (@BitcoinMagazine) July 6, 2023

What is Monero? 

Monero, often considered one of the most private crypto assets,  is a decentralized blockchain mainly focused on the privacy and anonymity of transactions and users. It was launched in 2014 by an anonymous group of seven developers to enable users to make payments without revealing their identities, wallet addresses, transferred amounts, or the centralized authority involved. 

Monero emerged from Bytecoin- a privacy-focused blockchain of 2012, where a team of developers proposed a fork to overcome the privacy concerns and security issues of existing blockchains at that time. This led to the creation of Bitmonero, which was later renamed as Monero, as we know it today. To achieve this goal, Monero underwent several updates and incorporates a range of technologies, including ring signatures, bulletproofs, stealth addresses, and more, all geared towards fortifying user privacy and transactional anonymity.

Key Features of Monero (XMR) 

• Monero’s privacy protection-oriented cryptographic technique ensures the anonymity of transactions and users’ identities.
• It employs bulletproof technology (kind of similar to ZK proof) to reduce the size of transactions and make the network more scalable.
• Monero blockchain’s unit blocks are designed such that they can increase block size as required to facilitate more transactions.
• When users transfer money with a Monero wallet, a new address is generated with each transaction making it difficult to link and trace them.
• Monero is based on a less extensive Proof-of-work consensus, so anyone can mine XMR coins with regular CPUs. This promotes the participation of more miners, thus making the network decentralized.

Monero Latest News

• Monero community is continually introducing new upgrades to enhance the privacy and security of users’ funds and transactions on the network.

Congratulations on a successful network upgrade! 🎉 #Monero is now more private and efficient with ringsize 16, Bulletproofs+, and view tags!

Make sure your node/wallet is updated to continue using Monero.

Privacy and fungibility matter, and it’s exciting to keep improving!

— Monero (XMR) (@monero) August 13, 2022

Comparing Bitcoin vs Monero 

Additional Read: Bitcoin vs Litecoin

Key Differences between Bitcoin vs Monero 

• Bitcoin users’ identities are pseudonymous, while Monero offers enhanced privacy and anonymity through various technologies like Ring CT, Stealth addresses, bulletproofs, etc.
• Transactions on the Bitcoin network are transparent and viewable, whereas Monero combines several transactions together, making them untraceable.
• Monero hides the wallet address and transaction amount, while the Bitcoin address can be viewed publicly along with the transaction and funds in the wallet.
• Bitcoin is not fungible as anyone can track its coin and transaction history, on the other side Monero is not tainted by past transactions and thus is interchangeable.
• Bitcoin has a limited block size and suffers from scalability issues, while there is no block size limit in Monero, and it utilizes multiple technologies to scale the network.
• Bitcoin and Monero both are Proof of Work consensus-based. However, Bitcoin’s mining algorithm requires extensive computational resources and energy, whereas the Monero CryptoNight algorithm enables the mining of XMR with usual CPUs.
• Bitcoin’s block confirmation time is around 10 minutes, which limits its scalability, and Monero’s block time is much faster, approximately 2 minutes. 

BTC Price Prediction 

Source: TradingView

• BTC’s price today is trading at $30,115.32, with a 24-hour trading volume of $8.45 billion. In the last 24 hours, The BTC price has seen a drop of about 0.68%.  BTC market cap is $585.87 billion as of July 10, 2023.
• BTC price has remained bullish overall this year and is currently up by more than 80% in a year trading period.
• It is trading within a parallel channel with its support residing at $29750. The ADX indicates a lack of volume & strength, so the BTC price might trade in a consolidated zone for the short term.

Know More: Bitcoin Price Prediction

XMR Price Prediction

Source: TradingView

• XMR’s price today is trading at $165.73, with a 24-hour trading volume of $48.08 million. In the last 24 hours, The XMR price has seen a drop of about 1.33%. XMR market cap is $3.03 billion as of July 10, 2023.
• XMR price has been trading in a range of $150-$165 for around three months before dropping to $133. 
• However, It has managed to reverse and is currently trading at more than 20%. If XMR’s price retains its strength, it might soon rise to $175.

Should you buy Bitcoin or Monero? 

Monero dominates more than 50% market cap of privacy coins. However, it has been previously used in various frauds, illegal activities and remains controversial among crypto communities as well as governments. Bitcoin, on the other hand, is perceived as a store of value crypto and has a large community backing it. It is entirely up to investors’ personal preference and risk appetite which one is better to invest in. Hence always do your own thorough research, and understand the applications and risks associated before investing in crypto assets.

How to Invest in BTC and XMR?

Investing in Bitcoin BTC or Monero XMR is extremely simple, fast, and secure with the CoinDCX App. All you need to do is register on the app and verify- for registering, follow the below-mentioned steps:

• Download CoinDCX App
• Register by entering your details.
• Complete your KYC
• Once your profile is verified, add funds to your wallet and Buy BTC or XMR.