Glossary
139 terms to sharpen your crypto trading knowledge
51% Attack
A 51% attack occurs when a single entity gains control of more than half of a blockchain network's hash rate, enabling them to manipulate transactions and undermine network integrity.
Address
String of text that designates the location of a particular wallet on the blockchain. Often a hashed version of a public key.
Airdrop
An airdrop is the free distribution of cryptocurrency tokens to qualifying wallet holders, used by projects as a marketing strategy to build community awareness and reward early adopters.
Algorithm
A cryptocurrency algorithm is a defined set of instructions that automates trading or mining decisions based on inputs like market data, price movements, and technical indicators.
All or None Order (AON)
An All or None (AON) order requires that the entire order quantity be filled in a single execution, or the order is cancelled — ensuring traders avoid unwanted partial fills.
All-Time High (ATH)
ATH (All-Time High) is the highest price a cryptocurrency has ever reached, representing a key psychological and technical reference level that traders use to inform their strategies.
Allocation
Allocation in crypto refers to how an investor distributes their capital across different cryptocurrencies and asset classes to balance risk and maximize potential returns.
Alpha
Alpha refers to the excess return a trader generates above a benchmark, representing genuine skill and edge rather than simply benefiting from overall market movements.
Altcoin
Altcoins are all cryptocurrencies other than Bitcoin, ranging from major platforms like Ethereum to thousands of smaller tokens serving diverse purposes within the crypto ecosystem.
Anti Money Laundering (AML)
Anti-Money Laundering (AML) refers to a set of regulations requiring crypto exchanges and financial service providers to detect and prevent the use of digital assets for illicit activities.
Application Programming Interface (API)
An API (Application Programming Interface) is a set of protocols that allows software applications to communicate, enabling trading bots to access exchange data and execute trades programmatically.
Arbitrage
Arbitrage is a trading strategy that profits from price differences for the same asset across different exchanges or trading pairs, requiring fast execution to capture fleeting opportunities.
Ask Price
The ask price is the lowest price a seller is willing to accept for an asset, representing the minimum cost a buyer must pay for an immediate transaction on an exchange.
Asset Management
Crypto asset management involves using automated tools and trading bots to manage portfolio allocation, execute strategies, and maintain consistent risk controls across digital asset holdings.
Bags
A "bagholder" is a trader holding a cryptocurrency that has fallen significantly in value, continuing to hold in hopes of recovery rather than accepting a loss.
Bear Market
A bear market is a sustained period of falling asset prices and negative investor sentiment, during which crypto assets can lose the majority of their value from peak prices.
Benchmark
A benchmark is a standard reference point used to evaluate the performance of a trading strategy or portfolio, typically a market index or a major cryptocurrency like Bitcoin.
BEP-2
BEP-2 is the token standard on Binance Chain used to issue and transfer digital assets, serving as the foundation for tokens traded on Binance DEX and other Binance Chain applications.
BEP-20
BEP-20 is the Binance Smart Chain token standard for fungible tokens, defining a common interface that enables wallets, exchanges, and DeFi protocols to interact with any compliant token.
BEP-721
BEP-721 is the Binance Smart Chain token standard for non-fungible tokens (NFTs), defining how unique, indivisible digital assets are created, owned, and transferred on the BSC network.
BEP-95
BEP-95 is a Binance Evolution Proposal that introduces a real-time burning mechanism on BNB Smart Chain, automatically burning a portion of gas fees collected with every block to reduce BNB's circulating supply.
Beta (Coefficient)
Beta coefficient measures an asset's price volatility relative to the broader market, where a value above 1 indicates greater volatility than the benchmark and below 1 indicates less.
Beta (Release)
A beta release is a feature-complete but pre-launch version of software released to a limited audience for testing, allowing developers to identify and fix remaining issues before public release.
Bid Price
The bid price is the highest price a buyer is currently willing to pay for an asset, representing the immediate sell price available to anyone looking to exit a position at market.
Bid-Ask Spread
The bid-ask spread is the difference between the highest price a buyer will pay and the lowest price a seller will accept, representing the implicit cost of executing a trade in any market.
Bitcoin
Bitcoin is the world's first cryptocurrency, operating on a decentralized blockchain with a fixed supply of 21 million coins.
Bitcoin Cash
Bitcoin Cash (BCH) is a 2017 fork of Bitcoin created to increase block size and improve transaction throughput for everyday payments.
Bitcoin Dominance
Bitcoin dominance measures Bitcoin's market capitalization as a percentage of the total crypto market cap, serving as a key indicator of capital rotation between Bitcoin and altcoins.
Bitcoin Maximalist
A Bitcoin maximalist believes Bitcoin is the only legitimate cryptocurrency, rejecting all other digital assets as inferior or unnecessary.
Bitcoin Pizza
Bitcoin Pizza Day commemorates May 22, 2010, when programmer Laszlo Hanyecz paid 10,000 BTC for two pizzas — the first known commercial transaction using Bitcoin.