The world needed to be set free of traditional fiat currencies. When the world called for help, cryptocurrency swooped in, answered, and saved us from the shortcomings of traditional fiat currencies. Cryptocurrency is more than just a digital currency. Since its inception, cryptocurrency has become a door to other technological improvements in the financial sector.
This new and exciting technology called cryptocurrency has positively impacted the financial sector beyond our imagination. It all started with the creation and launch of Bitcoin in 2009 as the first digital currency. Although Bitcoin initially faced major criticisms because of its low value, it has risen in prominence and value to over $60,000 in 2021. Even more, the success of Bitcoin has encouraged the creation and launch of over 1000 new digital currencies.
As cryptocurrency continues to gain traction and become one of the most popular investment vehicles, It is only right that the number of slang or lingo associated with it increases. If you have ever heard crypto traders discussing, you must have heard them using some slang, making it difficult for you to engage in the conversation. This is nothing to be ashamed of as a crypto beginner because nuanced crypto terminologies, technical terms, acronyms, and slang are formed every other day, and the average mind cannot easily decipher them.
As a crypto beginner, it is imperative that you learn these slangs to navigate the crypto world easily.
Here are 12 common crypto lingo that you need to know as a crypto beginner
NGMI
Some crypto lingo was formed to deliver cryptic encouraging messages or warnings to prevent loss. NGMI is the Former. The meaning of NGMI in crypto is “Not Going to Make It.” In the crypto ecosystem, NGMI is used to warn crypto investors of the huge losses that might be incurred on a particular trade. Knowing the meaning of NGMI in crypto and how to use it will go a long way in helping you understand the crypto market conditions. Now that you know the meaning of NGMI, you will be able to tell what cryptocurrencies other veteran crypto traders fear they could miss out on profits and act accordingly.
Side Note: While NGMI might be known as a crypto slang, it has also been adopted as the name of a new meme coin. It can be bought on PancakeSwap with the Binance native coin called BNB.
WAGMI
WAGMI is another crypto slang but is just another product of the crypto community in “Twitterverse.” WAGMI is an acronym for “we are gonna make it.” It is usually used to express support and a sort of camaraderie for fellow crypto traders. WAGMI is more of a clarion call for all crypto traders to come together to create a strong crypto community than it is a revolutionary overwhelm of the cryptosystem.
HODL
HODL is an acronym for “Hold on for Dear Life.” HOLD is also a common misspelling of the word “hold.” The term is like an instruction to crypto traders not to sell their assets when the crypto market is going through epileptic price changes. You hodl your coins in the hopes that they will increase in value.
FOMO
FOMO is an acronym for “Fear of Missing Out.” It is a psychological crypto term used to express dissatisfaction by traders that are not benefitting from a powerful bull market because they do not have an active spot. During this period, traders experiencing FOMO usually regret not investing during the dip and contemplating buying into an already high-end market in hopes of still benefitting from the market.
FUD
FUD is an acronym that stands for ‘Fear, Uncertainty, and Doubt.” It is used to project doubts about a cryptocurrency to prevent crypto traders from investing. To spread FUD, FUDers question the leadership of projects, pontificate on stagnant value movement, unclear roadmaps, poor fundamentals, and low use of the network.
BTD
BTD is an acronym for “Buy The Dip.” It is a common term usually said as a sort of financial advice. When you are told to buy the dip, you should enter a long position during a brief decrease in the price of the coin. You buy the dip and hodl, hoping that the coin’s value will increase in the near future and you will make massive gains.
dApps
dApps is short for decentralized apps. It is used to describe any practical blockchain or cryptocurrency application. dApps could be mobile games, social media sites, or communication platforms.
DeFi
DeFi is short for Decentralized Finance. It is an umbrella term for several cryptocurrency and blockchain projects. The major aim of DeFi is to remove the intermediaries out of your everyday transaction by automating the exchange of cryptocurrencies amongst crypto traders. Some popular DeFi projects are Aave, Chainlink, Avalanche, and PancakeSwap.
ICO
ICO is an acronym for Initial Coin Offering. ICO is a term used to describe how owners of blockchain projects pool funds to launch their virtual currency networks. The use of ICOs gained popularity in 2018 and 2019, but they have since been under severe scrutiny by the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) because most of them are pump and dump schemes.
Bull and Bear run
Bull run and bear run are two terms that go together because they are direct opposites. A bull run indicates an exponential increase in the value of a coin. Contradictorily, Bear is a term used to indicate a drastic decrease in the value of a coin. When you hear crypto traders say “bullish season,” know that it was a season in which they gained massively from the market.
Pump and dump
Pump and dump are terms used to describe the value manipulation of a cryptocurrency. When a coin experiences a “pump,” a group of high-profile investors is holding a significant percentage of the coin’s available supply at a low price. These investors will boost the coin using false recommendations, which then increases the demand for the coin within the market and increases the value of the coin. A dump is when the investors sell all their investments after the pump to make a profit, which drastically reduces the coin’s value and leads to loss for other traders.
To the moon
“To the moon,” as the literal meaning implies, is a phrase in the crypto industry that means the value of a coin is about to witness a huge increase. It is usually used to alert crypto traders that a particular coin will yield huge returns in the future if they invest at that moment. Popular Billionaire and Founder of Tesla and Space X have used it several times on Twitter.
Cryptocurrency is still the future
Lately, the crypto market has been undergoing some volatile changes, and most traders are beginning to doubt its worth. Cryptocurrency is still the future because the market always finds a way to bounce back. It might not be now, but it will happen.
Despite the recent pushbacks, cryptocurrency continues to gain popularity. No press is bad press, right? In this vein, expect more people to join the crypto conversation, and more creative crypto-related acronyms will be created.