Unlike traditional currencies, cryptocurrencies exist only as a shared digital record of ownership, stored on a blockchain. When a user wants to send cryptocurrency units to another user, they send it to that user’s digital wallet. The transaction isn’t considered final until it has been verified and added to the blockchain through a process called mining. This is also how new cryptocurrency tokens are usually created.
There’s already been a major breakthrough on this front, with the first Bitcoin ETF recently making its debut on the New York Stock Exchange. The development represents a new and more conventional way to invest in crypto. The BITO Bitcoin ETF allows investors to buy in on cryptocurrency directly from traditional investment brokerages they may already have accounts with, like Fidelity or Vanguard.

NEW YORK (AP) — A cryptocurrency company launched by partners of a major Wall Street trading firm said Tuesday that it has snagged the support of billionaire investor Steven A. Cohen, as big names from the traditional financial world continue to embrace the industry surrounding crypto.
No matter if crypto is going up or down, the best thing you can do is to not look at it. Set it and forget it like you would any traditional long-term investment account. “If you let your emotions get too much into it then you could sell at the wrong time, or you might make the wrong decision,” says Yang. “You stress out about it, and I don’t think that’s a healthy way to approach it.”