How It Works
Litecoin uses the Scrypt hashing algorithm, which is memory-intensive and was originally designed to prevent ASIC mining dominance. However, Scrypt ASICs now exist and dominate LTC mining, similar to Bitcoin. Merge mining with Dogecoin (since 2014) means LTC miners simultaneously mine DOGE, increasing their total rewards. Litecoin has 2.5-minute block times (4x faster than Bitcoin) and a 84 million LTC supply (4x Bitcoin's 21 million). The halving cycle reduces block rewards every 840,000 blocks, approximately every 4 years. MimbleWimble Extension Blocks (MWEB), added in 2022, provide optional transaction privacy for LTC.
Consensus Mechanism: Proof of Work
Proof of Work consensus requires miners to expend computational energy to propose new blocks. The miner who finds a valid block hash first broadcasts it to the network and earns the block reward. This creates an objective, energy-backed security model where attacking the network costs real-world resources.
Key Architecture Facts
| Category | Layer 1 |
| Consensus | Proof of Work |
| Launched | 2011 |
| Founder | Charlie Lee |