How to Buy Loopring (LRC)
Beginner’s Guide
What Is Loopring [LRC]?
LRC is the Ethereum-based cryptocurrency token of Loopring, an open protocol designed for the building of decentralized crypto exchanges.
In 2020, the average daily trading volume of the entire cryptocurrency market fluctuated in the approximate range of $50-$200 million. Most of that trading is conducted on centralized cryptocurrency exchanges — online platforms operated by private companies that store users’ funds and facilitate the matching of buy and sell orders.
Such platforms have a number of downsides common to all of them, so a new type of exchange — decentralized— has emerged to try to alleviate these disadvantages. However, fully decentralized exchanges are not without their own flaws.
Loopring’s purported goal is to combine centralized order matching with decentralized on-blockchain order settlement into a hybridized product that will take the best aspects of both centralized and decentralized exchanges.
LRC tokens became available to the public during an initial coin offering (ICO) in August 2017, while the Loopring protocol was first deployed on Ethereum mainnet in December 2019.
How to Buy Loopring Summary
- Get a Loopring wallet (e.g. Ledger, Trezor , Exodus, Guarda, AtomicWallet)
- Find an exchange that sells Loopring (e.g. Crypto.com, Binance , Coinbase , Bitfinex , Kucoin)
- Deposit money and make the trade
- Withdraw the Loopring to your wallet
Buying Loopring in 3 Simple Steps
Step 1 – Get a LRC wallet
Loopring Hardware Wallets
Loopring is an Ethereum-based cryptocurrency, and as such, it can be stored on any hardware wallet that supports Ethereum. Here are some popular hardware wallets that can be used to store Loopring:
Ledger Nano S: The Ledger Nano S is a popular hardware wallet that supports multiple cryptocurrencies, including Loopring. It is a compact device that can be connected to a computer via USB, and it allows users to securely store their private keys.
Trezor: The Trezor hardware wallet is another popular option for storing Loopring. It is a small, portable device that uses a combination of physical buttons and a display screen to enable secure transactions.
Ledger Nano X: The Ledger Nano X is a newer version of the Ledger Nano S that features Bluetooth connectivity and improved storage capacity. It is also compatible with the Ledger Live app, which provides a user-friendly interface for managing your cryptocurrencies.
KeepKey: KeepKey is a hardware wallet that supports several cryptocurrencies, including Loopring. It features a large, high-resolution display screen that makes it easy to view transaction details, and it is compatible with the KeepKey Chrome extension.
When choosing a hardware wallet to store your Loopring, it’s important to ensure that the wallet is reputable and secure. It’s also important to back up your wallet and keep your private keys secure. This will help ensure that your Loopring and other cryptocurrencies are kept safe and secure.
The best option for storing any cryptocurrency would be to use a hardware wallet. These are pieces of hardware that store the private key to your coins offline.
Today, there are two leading hardware manufacturers to choose from – Ledger and TREZOR. Both companies have different models of hardware wallets that will get the job done.
If you want deeper insights on specific models, you can read my Ledger Nano X review or my TREZOR Model T review.
Loopring Software Wallets
Loopring is an Ethereum-based cryptocurrency, and as such, it can be stored in any software wallet that supports Ethereum. Here are some popular software wallets that can be used to store Loopring:
MyEtherWallet (MEW): MyEtherWallet is a popular web-based wallet that supports Ethereum and Ethereum-based tokens, including Loopring. It is free to use, and it provides users with a user-friendly interface for managing their cryptocurrencies.
MetaMask: MetaMask is a browser extension wallet that can be used to store Ethereum and Ethereum-based tokens. It provides users with a simple and secure way to manage their cryptocurrencies and interact with decentralized applications (dApps) on the Ethereum network.
Trust Wallet: Trust Wallet is a mobile wallet that supports several cryptocurrencies, including Loopring. It is available for both iOS and Android devices and provides users with a simple and secure way to store and manage their cryptocurrencies.
Exodus: Exodus is a desktop wallet that supports several cryptocurrencies, including Ethereum and Ethereum-based tokens like Loopring. It provides users with a user-friendly interface and advanced security features like 2-factor authentication and seed backup.
When choosing a software wallet to store your Loopring, it’s important to ensure that the wallet is reputable and secure. It’s also important to back up your wallet and keep your private keys secure. This will help ensure that your Loopring and other cryptocurrencies are kept safe and secure.
Hardware wallets cost money, so if you’re not sure how serious you are about cryptocurrencies and just want to get a taste of what they feel like, perhaps you would be better off starting with a software wallet.
A software wallet is a free program that lets you store your coins on your computer or mobile phone.
The easiest Loopring coin software wallets to get started with are undoubtedly Exodus, AtomicWallet and Guarda . All wallets are very intuitive. Exodus, Atomic Wallet and Guarda is available on desktop for Windows, Mac and Linux, as well as on mobile for both iOS and Android. If you want more information you can read my Exodus, AtomicWallet and Guarda review.
Step 2 – Find an Loopring (LRC) Exchange
Buy Loopring through Crypto.com
- Crypto.com is a cryptocurrency exchange company based in Singapore. As of May 2022, the company reportedly had 50 million customers and 4,000 employees. The exchange issues a token, Cronos. The company was initially founded in Hong Kong by Bobby Bao, Gary Or, Kris Marszalek, and Rafael Melo in 2016 as “Monaco”. In 2018, the company was renamed as Crypto.com following a purchase of a domain owned by cryptography researcher and professor Matt Blaze. Domain sellers valued the domain at US$5–10 million.
Buy Loopring through Binance
- Binance is a cryptocurrency exchange which is the largest exchange in the world in terms of daily trading volume of cryptocurrencies. It was founded in 2017 and is registered in the Cayman Islands. Binance was founded by Changpeng Zhao, a developer who had previously created high frequency trading software.
Buy Loopring through Coinbase
- Coinbase is a convenient and cheap way to buy Ethereum and the platform is open to 200+ countries). Coinbase will sell you CRO for a variable fee that depends on your payment method (credit cards have a higher fee than wire transfers), order size and market volatility. Here’s how you buy Ethereum on Coinbase: Open a Coinbase account Add your payment method (Credit card or bank account) Go to “Buy/Sell” and select the amount of Ethereum you desire Click “Buy Cronos”
Buy Loopring through Bitfinex
- Bitfinex is a cryptocurrency exchange owned and operated by iFinex Inc registered in the British Virgin Islands.Their customers’ money has been stolen or lost in several incidents, and they have been unable to secure normal banking relationships. Bitfinex was founded in December 2012 as a peer-to-peer Bitcoin exchange, offering digital asset trading services to users around the world. Bitfinex initially started as a P2P margin lending platform for Bitcoin and later added support for more cryptocurrencies.
Buy Loopring through Kucoin
- Kucoin is a global cryptocurrency exchange for numerous digital assets and cryptocurrencies. Launched in September 2017, KuCoin has grown into one of the most popular crypto exchanges and already has over 8 million registered users from 700+ countries and regions. According to Alexa traffic ranking, KuCoin’s monthly unique ranking is in the top 5 globally. Known as the “People’s Exchange”, KuCoin operates in Seychelles, providing users with multi-language and 24/7 customer service. Meanwhile, KuCoin has established local communities all over the world in South Korea, Japan, Spain, Italy, Vietnam, Turkey, Russia, India, and other regions, providing users with the most local services. Currently, 1 out of every 4 crypto holders in the world is with KuCoin.
Step 3 – Withdraw Your Loopring (LRC)
Once you decide on an exchange, open an account and buy your Loopring. Make sure to withdraw the Loopring from the exchange to your personal wallet.
Never leave coins on an exchange, as you risk losing them all if that exchange gets hacked or shuts down (which has happened in the past) and always double check address before send coins because you can send the coins to wrong address .
OVERVIEW
Who Are the Founders of Loopring?
The founder and current CEO of Loopring Foundation, which manages the development of Loopring protocol, is Daniel Wang, a software engineer and entrepreneur based in Shanghai, China.
Wang has a bachelor’s degree in computer science from the University of Science and Technology of China, as well as a master’s degree in the same field from Arizona State University.
Prior to starting work on Loopring, Wang has held multiple managerial and executive positions in major tech companies: he was a lead software engineer at the medical device manufacturer Boston Scientific, the senior director of engineering, search, recommendation and ads system at the Chinese e-commerce giant JD.com, as well as a tech lead and senior software engineer at Google.
Wang has also co-founded several companies: Yunrang (Beijing) Information Technology Ltd. and the cryptocurrency services firm Coinport Technology Ltd.
What Makes Loopring Unique?
Loopring is a decentralized exchange protocol that is built on top of the Ethereum blockchain. Here are some key features that make Loopring unique:
Decentralized: Loopring is a decentralized exchange protocol, which means that it does not rely on a central authority or intermediary to facilitate trades. Instead, it uses smart contracts to execute trades directly between users, providing a more secure and transparent trading experience.
Agnostic: Loopring is agnostic to the underlying blockchain, which means that it can be used to trade any asset that is represented on a blockchain. This makes it a versatile solution for trading a wide variety of assets, including cryptocurrencies, tokens, and other digital assets.
Interoperable: Loopring is designed to be interoperable with other blockchain-based systems, which means that it can be used in conjunction with other decentralized protocols and platforms. This enables users to seamlessly move assets between different platforms and to take advantage of different features and functionalities offered by different systems.
High Performance: Loopring is designed to be highly scalable and to provide high-performance trading capabilities. It uses an off-chain order book to improve the speed and efficiency of trading, while still maintaining the security and trustlessness of a decentralized exchange.
Low Fees: Loopring’s fee structure is designed to be highly competitive and to provide low trading fees for users. This makes it an attractive option for traders who are looking to minimize their trading costs.
Overall, Loopring’s combination of decentralization, interoperability, and high performance make it a unique and promising solution for decentralized exchange and trading on the blockchain.
How Many Loopring [LRC] Coins Are There in Circulation?
The issuance of LRC tokens is governed by the smart contracts that comprise the Loopring Protocol.
The primary way of earning LRC is via so-called ring mining: in order to improve the liquidity of the Loopring network, the orders in it are not matched strictly as pairs of two cryptocurrencies. Instead, the protocol can mix and match up to 16 orders for different cryptocurrencies in a circular trade, called an order ring.
Nodes on the Loopring network are rewarded in LRC tokens for combining individual orders into order rings, maintaining public order books and trade history, and in some cases broadcasting orders to other relays.
How Is the Loopring Network Secured?
The Loopring network is secured through a combination of on-chain and off-chain mechanisms.
On-chain, Loopring leverages the security and trustlessness of the Ethereum blockchain, on which it is built. Trades executed on the Loopring protocol are settled on the Ethereum blockchain using smart contracts, which ensure that trades are executed as agreed upon and that funds are transferred securely.
Off-chain, Loopring uses a number of different mechanisms to improve the speed and efficiency of trading while still maintaining the security and trustlessness of a decentralized exchange. These mechanisms include:
Order Matching: Loopring uses an off-chain order book to match buy and sell orders. This allows for trades to be executed quickly and efficiently, without the need for all trades to be processed on the Ethereum blockchain.
Dual Authoring: To ensure the security of trades, Loopring uses a dual authoring mechanism, which requires both the user and the exchange to sign off on a trade before it can be executed. This ensures that trades are only executed when both parties have agreed to the terms.
Anti-Front Running: Loopring uses a mechanism to prevent front-running, which is a tactic used by some traders to gain an unfair advantage by placing trades before other traders. This mechanism ensures that trades are executed fairly and transparently, without any one party gaining an unfair advantage.
Decentralized Governance: The Loopring protocol is governed by a decentralized network of token holders, who have the ability to propose and vote on changes to the protocol. This ensures that the protocol remains transparent, secure, and community-driven.
Overall, the combination of on-chain and off-chain mechanisms used by the Loopring network helps to ensure that trades are executed securely, efficiently, and fairly, while still maintaining the security and trustlessness of a decentralized exchange.