Glossary

An Automated Market Maker (AMM) is a type of decentralized trading system used on blockchain networks that allows users to trade assets without a traditional order book.

A bank account is a financial record held with a bank or financial institution that lets an individual or business store money securely, make payments, and access funds as needed.

Bitcoin (BTC) is the first and most widely recognized cryptocurrency. BTC can be used as a store of value, a means of transferring money globally, or for payments where accepted.

A block explorer is essentially a search engine for the blockchain. It allows anyone to browse through the real-time and historical data of a specific network.

A blockchain is a decentralized digital ledger that records transactions securely and transparently. Learn how blockchains work and how KAST uses them for payments.

Cashback refers to a reward program where users receive a percentage of their spending back as a rebate.

A coin is a cryptocurrency that operates on its own independent blockchain. Unlike tokens, coins are the fundamental foundation of its specific ecosystem.

Cold storage means keeping cryptocurrency offline to protect private keys from hackers. Learn how cold storage works and how it fits into a secure crypto strategy.

A credit card is a payment card that lets you borrow funds up to a preset limit to make purchases, pay bills, or access cash advances.

A crypto card is a payment card that allows you to spend digital assets in everyday transactions wherever traditional card networks are accepted.

A cryptocurrency is a type of digital or virtual asset that uses cryptography and decentralized networks to secure transactions and control the creation of new units

A custodial wallet is a type of cryptocurrency wallet where a third party holds and manages your private keys for you.

Decentralized applications run on blockchain networks rather than on centralized servers. dApps operate using smart contracts, which automatically execute rules and logic.

Decentralized Finance (DeFi) refers to a broad ecosystem of financial applications built on blockchain networks that operate without traditional intermediaries.

A depeg occurs when a cryptocurrency that is designed to maintain a fixed value relative to another asset temporarily or permanently moves away from its intended price.

A digital asset is any item of value that exists in digital form and can be owned, transferred, or stored electronically.

A feature at payment terminals that allows you to pay in your home currency (e.g., USD) rather than the local currency

Ethereum is a decentralized blockchain platform designed to support smart contracts and decentralized applications (dApps).

The Euro (EUR) is the official currency of most countries in the European Union (EU), used by millions of people across the continent.

Fiat currency refers to government-issued money that is not backed by a physical commodity. Instead, its value is derived from legal recognition and trust in the issuing authority.

Gas fee is the cost required to process and validate a transaction on a blockchain network

A hard peg is a strict fixed link between one currency and another asset or currency, meaning the value does not fluctuate relative to its reference.

Interest rates are the cost of borrowing or return on savings, expressed as a percentage. They affect loans, deposits, and economic activity.

In crypto, a joint account typically refers to a wallet structure where multiple parties share control over the same funds.

A mandatory identity verification process required by financial regulators for any service that handles real money

A liquidity pool is a collection of digital assets locked in a smart contract that enables users to trade, borrow, and lend without relying on traditional buyers or sellers.

Mining is the process by which certain blockchain networks validate transactions and add them to the public ledger, known as the blockchain.

A non-fungible token (NFT) is a type of digital asset that represents unique ownership or proof of authenticity on a blockchain.

Onchain refers to any activity, transaction, or data that is recorded directly on a blockchain. Onchain activity is transparent, verifiable, and resistant to tampering.

A pegged currency is a currency whose value is fixed or closely tied to another asset, such as a foreign currency, commodity, or basket of assets.

A private key is a confidential cryptographic code that grants control over cryptocurrency held in a wallet and acts as proof of ownership.

Quantitative easing (QE) is a monetary policy tool used by central banks to stimulate economic activity when traditional interest rate adjustments are not enough.

Traditional financial assets, such as U.S. Treasury bills, real estate, or commodities, that are represented on the blockchain through tokenization

The delay between when a payment is authorized (transaction approved) and when the funds actually move from your account to the merchant

A smart contract is a self-executing program stored on a blockchain that automatically enforces rules and actions when predefined conditions are met.

Solana is a high-performance blockchain network designed for fast transactions and low fees. It supports smart contracts and decentralized applications,

A cryptocurrency designed to maintain a steady value relative to another asset, most commonly the US dollar.

Staking is a process used in certain blockchain networks where participants lock up their cryptocurrency to help support and secure the network.

A Token is built on top of an existing blockchain and borrows that network's infrastructure to function

Total Value Locked (TVL) is a metric used to measure the total amount of digital assets deposited in a blockchain protocol or ecosystem.

A transaction (TX) is the transfer of cryptocurrency from one wallet address to another, recorded on a blockchain’s distributed ledger.

The US dollar (USD) is the official currency of the United States and one of the most widely used and traded currencies in the world.

Visa is a global payments technology company that enables electronic fund transfers between consumers, merchants, financial institutions, and governments.

A crypto wallet is a digital tool that allows users to send, receive, and manage cryptocurrencies and tokens on a blockchain.

XRP is a digital asset native to the XRP Ledger, a blockchain designed for fast, low-cost value transfers, created by RippleLabs.

Yield refers to the return earned on digital assets over time. In crypto, it is usually generated through staking, lending or liquidity provision.

A zero-knowledge proof is a cryptographic method that lets one party prove to another that a statement is true without revealing the underlying information itself.