Finding additional use cases for cryptocurrency is not all that easy. One can argue that, without darknet markets, Bitcoin wouldn’t be where it is today. However, the world’s leading cryptocurrency also lacks privacy and anonymity. Some people feel Litecoin would be a decent fit for darknet users, yet that is anything but the case. Granted, LTC has faster transactions, but it also lacks the same important traits as Bitcoin does.
To put this into perspective, Litecoin has many advantages. It is faster to complete transactions, including getting them confirmed. At some points, an LTC transfer is cheaper than a Bitcoin transfer as well. However, none of those traits make Litecoin suited for the darknet by any means. There is no anonymity or privacy to speak of. Darknet users are looking for those specific traits first and foremost.
Litecoin Was Never Made to Provide Privacy and Anonymity
Bitcoin had the advantage of how there are several different coin mixers. Such platforms charge a substantial fee to “clean your existing bitcoins from any taint.It requires a lot of trust between the sender and operator to complete such transactions, to say the least. Now that the largest Bitcoin mixer is gone, that process becomes a lot more complicated as well. It certainly leaves the door open for other currencies to make a name for themselves on the darknet.
Litecoin won’t be a good fit, though, as “mixing” LTC is virtually impossible. There are a few services out there which seemingly offer such a service, although it is impossible to tell if they are legitimate. Without mixed Litecoins, darknet users won’t make use of this currency anytime soon. Even though it is a much faster currency in terms of transaction speed, that alone doesn’t make it appealing to these people. A missed opportunity, perhaps, but not one to lose sleep over either.
Last but not least, Litecoin shouldn’t be associated with illegal activity to become appealing. Monero seems perfect for the darknet, thus let people use that if they want privacy and anonymity. Litecoin has no purpose to serve on the darknet, nor should it. The currency offers plenty of features for mainstream users to get excited about. Whether or not that will happen automatically, remains to be seen, though.
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