Most of you have already heard of the most well-known cryptocurrencies, such as bitcoin or ethereum. You are also most likely aware that there are more than 1,500 others. And this number will continue to grow as more and more companies or people decide to create their own cryptocurrency.
But exactly, how do we create a cryptocurrency? What skills are required to create your cryptocurrency?
On paper, to create a cryptocurrency, you must meet these 3 conditions:
Now that you have in mind the very main lines to follow, let’s see in more detail how it all works.
The technological choice
The real start starts with your idea. But before we talk about your idea, let’s start by talking about the technology needed to make your idea a reality.
There are two ways to design the creation of your cryptocurrency:
- Create your own blockchain. In this case, you will create what is called a “corner” in English.
- Use an already existing blockchain. In this case, your cryptocurrency will be called “token” in English.
You will therefore have to decide whether you want to create a coin or a token. Would you rather create something starting from 0 that can match exactly what you want? Or do you prefer to use an existing and proven technology?
The first option will require a lot more work but you will be able to do exactly what you want. The second option already offers an operational system but could limit you in your future developments.
It’s up to you to see what seems best according to your final objectives:
- Creating a coin will require significantly more money and will require much more time. In addition, you will need a large team of developers for you to carry out this project. Also, it will be harder to get people’s trust in the quality of your blockchain.
- If you don’t really need to have a specific blockchain, then opting for a token will be the most interesting solution from a speed, cost and user trust point of view.
The best choice for creating a token
If you decide to create a token, then you will probably move towards tokens based on the Ethereum or Neo blockchain. In any case, this is what most of the creators of a new token decide to do.
When you create a token based on the Ethereum blockchain, it will be a token that is called an ERC-20 type. Ethereum is popular for creating new tokens because it is the first blockchain that has made it possible. In addition, people have a very high confidence in Ethereum.
Neo is also quite popular. Its characteristics are broadly similar to Ethereum, but the tokens created on this blockcahin are qualified as the standard NEP-5 type.
The choice between one or the other of these blockchains will depend only on your preferences. Ethereum has the advantage of popularity and trust, but only allows coding in the computer language that is specific to this blockchain, Solidity. So you will have to start by learning this programming language. On Neo, you can use several different programming languages, such as C++ or Java for example. Launch of an ICO
When a company decides to go public, it practices what is called an IPO. This term comes from English and means “Initial Public Offer” and allows people to buy shares of the company.
In the world of crypto-currencies, it will be necessary to resort to what is called an ICO of “Initial Coin Offer”. Instead of receiving shares of the company, the user will receive cryptocurrencies, which will have exactly the same utility as a stock on the stock exchange.
Creating a cryptocurrency takes time and requires a lot of resources. Using an ICO is therefore a great way to raise funds for your project.
However, this will not happen easily either. You will need to earn the trust of your future investors.
The most successful ICOs have generally always met the following conditions:
- A strong team that has proven itself. For example a Doctor of Computer Science from Harvard as chief programmer, an alumnus of MicroSoft for marketing, etc.
- Realistic plans for the future. All expenses must be planned and explained, dates must be announced for the realization of the different stages of the project, etc.
The creation of your cryptocurrency
Before attacking the heart of the matter, I will start from the following postulates:
- You don’t have millions in the bank to create your own blockchain and therefore a coin.
- You will therefore choose to take the easy way by opting for the creation of a token on an already existing block.
So in what will follow, the explanations will be given for the creation of a token and not a coin.
When you are going to launch your ICO, know that while this is the best way to receive money, it is not so easy to carry it out. To maximize your chances of success, here’s what you absolutely need:
1. A big idea in reinforced concrete
This is the main heart of your project, a great idea. You need to think about how your idea will make things better using the decentralization that blockchain allows.
Do you plan to eliminate intermediaries through smart contracts? Do you want to find a solution to address poverty and lack of education? The goal is to find a very real problem for people and create a solution through blockchain. The elimination of intermediaries saves a huge amount of time and money, for example.
Keep in mind that if your project does not bring anything new compared to what already exists, then it is a safe bet that not many people will be interested in it.
