Many have this misconception that cryptocurrencies are anonymous, specially Bitcoin. In fact, cryptocurrencies are very much more transparent than your federal banks and institutions. Every transaction on the blockchain is stored in a public ledger where everyone can view it. Bitcoin, Ethereum, Dogecoin, Shiba Inu, and thousands of other cryptocurrencies are traceable and not anonymous.
But interestingly there are some cryptocurrencies that are for real anonymous and the transactions cannot be traced because they are not recorded in the ledger. These very cryptocurrencies are in fact known as “Private Cryptocurrency”.
WHAT IS PRIVATE CRYPTOCURRENCY?
To define it in a simple way, a private cryptocurrency is built on a public blockchain where the transaction history is not recorded on the public ledger giving anonymity to its users while transferring the data/value.
HOW DOES IT WORK?
They have great built-in privacy features that allow the transactions in here to route through multiple networks making them almost impossible to trace. However, 100% anonymity is never guaranteed despite its sophisticated encryption and privacy features.
Here are the top 7 Private Cryptocurrencies that you must know about:
1) Monero (XMR)
Monero also known as XMR is a private currency and it is used for the exchange of goods, services, and other currencies. XMR is accepted by many entities. This is probably the most popular private cryptocurrency. The transactions with XMR are much more difficult to trace because they use stealth addresses and ring signatures.
This helps the sender and the receiver to hide their identities. Additionally, Ring Confidential Transactions, or RingCT, provides more privacy by helping to conceal the transaction amount.
Monero XMR is trading at ₹12,723.04 as of 17 August 2022 and ranks at #30 according to Coingecko.
2) ZCash (ZEC)
ZCash is another private cryptocurrency that is second on our list. ZCash shields its transaction with the use of zk-SNARKs, a cryptographic technology, it is a particular type of zero-knowledge proof technology (ZKPs), which allows network on the blockchain network to validate transactions without disclosure of user’s transaction data.
ZCash is also known as the ‘HTTPS of blockchains,’ and interestingly other cryptocurrencies according to them are the “HTTP of the blockchain”.
Currently, ZCash (ZEC) is trading at ₹5,775.24 as of 17 August 2022 and ranks at #55 according to Coingecko.
3) DASH
DASH is the third on our list. It was created in 2014 when Ethereum did not even exist. Dash was that one cryptocurrency to emphasize the importance of privacy. Originally it was called Darkcoin, as it was mostly used in the darknet market where anonymity is crucial, but later changed the name to DASH. The users could use InstaSend, it’s basically a feature that mixes coins that are built on the protocol. A coin mixer would combine transactions and send them to different addresses so that it would be difficult to trace where the coin has bent sent and by whom.
The interesting part is that the mixer is built directly into the DASH protocol. The Coinmixer feature is available for Bitcoin too, but third-party services run it and it’s a problematic thing because a service run by an organization or person is never easy or liable to be trusted.
DASH is currently trading at ₹4,136.41 as of 17 August 2022 and ranks at #89 according to Coingecko.
4) Horizen (ZEN)
Horizen is another private cryptocurrency that works almost the same as Bitcoin because it is shielded with Z-Addresses and public T-Address. But what differs in ZEN is that sending funds from a Z-Address to a T-Address will show the amount received.
At the same time what improves ZEN’s anonymity is that it has a vast node of the network.
Currently, ZEN is trading at ₹1,669.44 and ranks at #148 according to Coingecko.
5) Verge (XVG)
This cryptocurrency is quite an interesting one, as it relies on cryptographic techniques. Verge protects its user’s identities by depending on the existing and tested technology of The Onion Router (TOR) and the Invisible Internet Project. The user’s communication is bounced over a distributed network of relays and tunnels run by volunteers all over the world and thereby giving anonymity to the user.
The I2P allows users to hide locations and IP addresses while making transactions because of its anonymous use of encryption with peer-to-peer distributed networks. Verge was also on the headlines when P*rnhub adopted it by accepting the coin on their site.
VERGE (XVG) is currently trading at ₹0.307169 as of 17 August 2022 and ranks at #377 according to Coingecko.
6) BEAM
Beam is a privacy coin that aims to explore confidential DeFi. Its features include complete control over your privacy, it is a security-focused token. By default, all its transactions are private and no addresses or any private information are stored on the blockchain. It uses the Mimblewimble protocol that conceals the values and metadata of transactions while reducing bloating in the blockchain and improving scalability. It also aims to provide privacy and anonymity in every aspect of the implementation of LelantusMV. It also supports online and offline transactions, atomic swaps, and hardware wallet integration.
BEAM is currently trading at ₹14.05 as of 17 August 2022 and ranks at #687 according to Coingecko.
7) Bytecoin (BCN)
Bytecoin might sound like Bitcoin but it is not as BCN is a private cryptocurrency with an open-source code that allows everyone to take part in the Bytecoin network development. It is said that Bytecoin works as fast as the internet. Its main goal is to work fast, be anonymous, and make untraceable transactions without charging any fee.
Bytecoin was established in 2012 just 3 years after the invention of Bitcoin. This is the first privacy room created with open-source code that allows anyone to be part of the development network. It claims to be the first cryptocurrency to implement CryptoNote technology. Bytecoin was one of the first coins to introduce and use ring signatures.
Bytecoin is currently trading at ₹0.00496881 and ranks at #403 according to Coingecko.
The above are the top 7 Private Cryptocurrencies that are currently hot and trending right now. There are hundreds of private cryptocurrencies out there in the market but when using one you got to be vigilant about it.
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Disclaimer: The information provided in this article is solely the author’s opinion. The Content is for informational purposes only, you should not construe this information as legal, tax, investment, financial, or other advice. Do your own research and invest wisely.
