Cryptocurrencies: What are smart contracts?

The use of cryptocurrencies, especially Bitcoin, as a medium of exchange or as a store of value is widely known worldwide; however, in dialogue with Voz Media, cryptocurrency expert Leo Beltrán explains that in 2013, the first smart contract network emerged: Ethereum.

Beltrán points out that smart contracts are “programs that run automatically” in the blockchain, the decentralized information settlement technology on which Bitcoin and other cryptocurrencies are based. He adds that thanks to this type of technology, an intermediary's intervention is unnecessary.

The expert adds that although Ethereum was the first network, the truth is that others have been created over the years, offering all types of investment opportunities, being deposits to generate interest and exchanging cryptocurrencies as the most chosen options, at least for the moment.

To avoid fraud, Beltrán calls for “using common sense.” He emphasizes that if “something is too good to be true,” it is probably a hoax or at least a platform that warrants further investigation before investing.