We've all heard it at some point in our crypto careers.

Blockchain this. Blockchain that.

What exactly is a blockchain? And how does it work?

Well stick around, because that's what this post is about.

And no, this won't be a 500 word long post. It will be short and sweet, and will give you all the info you NEED, not just all the info.

Let's dive in!

So, let's take the word apart. Block and Chain.

Block in this context refers to a 'muddle' of data. It is like a house or storage compartment for data.

Chain is like a string or number of these blocks that contain this data.

So together, it is called Blockchain.

In other words, a blockchain is an often decentralised(having no central entity controlling it's transactions) storage area of transactions pertaining to a particular cryptocurrencies.

In other words, a blockchain allows a cryptocurrency to run smoothly.

Whenever you initiate a transaction using a cryptocurrency, say Bitcoin, your transaction is added to a 'block' on the Blockchain. This block is then 'mined'(in the case of bitcoin and many other cryptocurrencies) or decrypted and the transaction is allowed to pass through.

The Blockchain serves as a 'passthrough' for transactions using a specific cryptocurrency.

And some Blockchains like the Ethereum Blockchain allow for other cryptocurrencies to be created on it.(Think BAT, DAI and other ERC20 tokens)

Blockchains are secure because of the sheer number of computers they are built upon, and other factors that are out of the scope of this post.

So in summary, Blockchains are a collection of interconnected computers that allow transactions using a particular cryptocurrency.

It's that simple!

Thanks for reading!