The crypto glossary that gets your money
Clear definitions, with no jargon, written by the Bitso team. From Bitcoin to DeFi, a space for Latin America to understand its money.
P2P
A network architecture where participants connect directly to each other, with no server or central authority, on which Bitcoin was built.
Ponzi scheme
A fraud that pays returns to earlier investors with money from new investors, with no real investment behind it.
Private key
The secret cryptographic code that controls your cryptocurrency: whoever holds it can sign transactions and move the funds. It's not a recoverable password; it is ownership itself.
Proof of Stake
Proof of Stake (PoS) is a consensus mechanism in which validators lock up cryptocurrency as collateral to earn the right to validate transactions and create blocks.
Proof of Work
Proof of Work (PoW) is Bitcoin's original consensus mechanism: miners compete to solve a mathematical problem that requires real energy, and the winner validates the next block in exchange for a reward.
Pump and dump
Market manipulation in which a group artificially inflates an asset's price through coordinated buying and misleading promotion, then sells at the peak.
How we built this glossary
This glossary is written and reviewed by the Bitso editorial team — the most used crypto platform in Latin America, with more than 9 million people trading in Mexico, Argentina, Colombia and Brazil. Every definition goes through product, compliance and financial-education specialists before being published.
Our goal is simple: that you truly understand what each concept means before moving your money. That's why we avoid unnecessary technical language and explain everything with examples designed for the region. If a term changes or a new one appears, we review it and keep it up to date.
Want to go deeper? Visit the Bitso blog, discover the available products or read our guides to get started in crypto.