WALLEXPEDIA.

A notary is a public official commissioned by the state government. A notarized statement is the said statement when a notary attests the same by affixing his official seal and signatures on the said document after it has been signed by the deponent.2

An address is a “payment instruction” for a digital asset. When receiving payment, a payee communicates an address to the payor, and the payor sends funds to that address. A set of addresses used together comprises a wallet.3

Acquirers provide legal entities with the means to accept card payments. These legal entities are called Merchants and they can use Acquirers virtual or physical POS terminals to accept payments.4

Acquiring processors are the set of system that provide the connectivity to the networks or payment gateways to process transactions.

Adverse media is a type of screening performed on individuals or businesses. To goal is to check for conviction or link to any criminal activity relating to financial crime (fraud, money-laundering, terrorism funding, etc.)

The distribution of free tokens or coins to holders of a specific cryptocurrency or to members of a community for promotional purposes.

TAny cryptocurrency other than Bitcoin. Examples include Ethereum (ETH), Ripple (XRP), Litecoin (LTC), etc.

An alternative trading system (ATS) is one that is not regulated as an exchange but is a venue to match the buy and sell orders of its subscribers. ATS account for much of the liquidity found in publicly traded issues worldwide. They are known as multilateral trading facilities in Europe, electronic communication networks (ECNs), cross networks, and call networks. Most ATS are registered as broker-dealers rather than exchanges and focus on finding counterparties for transactions.8

Anti-money Laundering is a set of policies and procedures enforced by European directives and local regulations to prevent the use of financial systems for the purpose of money laundering.

Also known as ‘blind trust’. In a blind trust, the trustees have full discretion over the assets, and the trust beneficiaries theoretically have no knowledge of the holdings of the trust. The trustor initiates the trust and maintains the ability to terminate the trust, but otherwise exercises no control over the actions taken within the trust and receives no reports from the trustees while the blind trust is in force.7

Apple Pay is a mobile payments service that utilizes Near Field Communication (NFC) to initiate secure payments between Apple devices and contactless POS terminals.

Fees that are charged by networks on both acquirer and issuers for the usage of the network. This is how networks make money.

The highest price a cryptocurrency has ever reached.

A peer-to-peer exchange of cryptocurrencies directly between users without the need for an intermediary, often facilitated by smart contracts.

Audit can be done internally by employees or heads of a particular department and externally by an outside firm or an independent auditor. The idea is to check and verify the accounts by an independent authority to ensure that all books of accounts are done in a fair manner and there is no misrepresentation or fraud that is being conducted.

Bitcoin is a digital currency created in January 2009. It follows the ideas set out in a whitepaper by the mysterious and pseudonymous developer Satoshi Nakamoto, whose true identity has yet to be verified. Bitcoin offers the promise of lower transaction fees than traditional online payment mechanisms.

A block is a set of updates to the blockchain ledger. Using Bitcoin as an example, a block is basically a virtual container of bitcoin transactions. A block can hold a limited amount of data, allowing for a certain number of transactions and the corresponding data to be stored in each block. A bitcoin node receives these blocks, validates all transactions in them, and then applies the updates to the global ledger. A bitcoin miner is tasked to validate all transactions in the block and then solve a complicated mathematical equation that cryptographically ties this block to previous blocks. Once broadcast to other nodes and miners, this block is added to the string of blocks that make up the chain. The whole blockchain is a publicly viewable record that keeps track of every transaction that has ever occurred within that digital asset.

The amount that miners may claim as a reward for creating a block. Equal to the sum of the block subsidy (newly available satoshis) plus the transactions fees paid by transactions included in the block10. With bitcoin, the reward given is cut in half every four years in order to control the distribution of coins released.

Blockchain is the underlying technology that Bitcoin and most other digital assets use to record and validate transactions. It is a linked list of transaction updates to a virtual digital public ledger. A blockchain consists of a group of transactions in blocks. These blocks are cryptographically connected to one another as they are mined, creating a long chain. The nature of the cryptographic tie from one block to previous blocks means that previous blocks cannot be altered by anyone.

Are certificates that promise to pay a fixed rate of interest. A person who buys a bond is not buying ownership in a company but is lending the company money. The bond is the company’s promise to repay that money with interest at regular intervals. If a company goes bankrupt, bondholders are paid before stockholders, thus it is considered as a safe investment.

BTC is the original shorthand for bitcoin. This designation is often used on digital asset exchanges to denominate a bitcoin’s current value. However, there has been an increase in the use of XBT as an alternate designation. The reason for this is that the International Organization for Standardization (ISO), which keeps a listing of all currencies, uses X to symbolize a currency that is not attached to a specific country (which is the case for all digital assets, because they are decentralized).

A market condition characterised by rising prices, optimism, and an overall positive sentiment among investors. Burn: The process of permanently removing a certain amount of a cryptocurrency from circulation, often done to control supply and create scarcity.

The process of permanently removing a certain amount of a cryptocurrency from circulation, often done to control supply and create scarcity.

Cloud-based is a term that refers to applications, services or resources made available to users on demand via the Internet from a cloud computing provider’s servers. Companies typically utilize cloud-based computing as a way to increase capacity, enhance functionality or add additional services on demand without having to commit to potentially expensive infrastructure costs or increase / train existing in-house support staff.

Cold storage in the context of Bitcoin refers to storing Bitcoins offline and spending without the private keys controlling them ever being online. This resists theft by hackers and malware, and is often a necessary security precaution especially dealing with large amounts of Bitcoin.

Collateral is an asset that a lender accepts as security for extending a loan. If the borrower defaults on her loan payments, the lender may seize the collateral and sell it to recoup some or all of his losses. Collateral can take the form of real estate or other kinds of assets, depending on what the loan is used for.

A commodity is a basic good used in commerce that is interchangeable with other goods of the same type. Commodities are most often used as inputs in the production of other goods or services. The quality of a given commodity may differ slightly, but it is essentially uniform across producers. When they are traded on an exchange, commodities must also meet specified minimum standards, also known as a basis grade. They tend to change rapidly from year to year.

The process of validating a transaction on the blockchain by including it in a block.

The mechanism used by a blockchain network to achieve agreement on the state of the blockchain. Examples include Proof of Work (PoW) and Proof of Stake (PoS).

A corporation is a legal entity that is separate and distinct from its owners. Corporations enjoy most of the rights and responsibilities that individuals possess: they can enter contracts, loan and borrow money, sue and be sued, hire employees, own assets, and pay taxes. Some refer to it as a “legal person.”

A cryptocurrency is a digital or virtual currency that is secured by cryptography, which makes it nearly impossible to counterfeit or double- spend. Many cryptocurrencies are decentralized networks based on blockchain technology—a distributed ledger enforced by a disparate network of computers. A defining feature of cryptocurrencies is that they are generally not issued by any central authority, rendering them theoretically immune to government interference or manipulation.

A divergence in the blockchain, resulting in two separate chains with different rules and consensus mechanisms.

Cryptography provides for secure communication in the presence of malicious third-parties—known as adversaries. Encryption uses an algorithm and a key to transform an input (i.e., plaintext) into an encrypted output (i.e., ciphertext). A given algorithm will always transform the same plaintext into the same ciphertext if the same key is used. Algorithms are considered secure if an attacker cannot determine any properties of the plaintext or key, given the ciphertext. An attacker should not be able to determine anything about a key given a large number of plaintext/ciphertext combinations which used the key.

Interoperability between different blockchain networks, allowing assets and data to be transferred seamlessly.

A type of wallet where a third party, such as an exchange, holds and manages the private keys on behalf of the user.

A custodian is a financial institution that holds customers’ securities for safekeeping in order to minimize the risk of their theft or loss. A custodian holds securities and other assets in electronic or physical form. Since they are responsible for the safety of assets and securities that may be worth hundreds of millions or even billions of dollars, custodians generally tend to be large and reputable firms. A custodian is sometimes referred to as a “custodian bank.”

An application that runs on a blockchain network, leveraging its decentralized and trustless nature.

A derivative is a financial security with a value that is reliant upon or derived from, an underlying asset or group of assets—a benchmark. The derivative itself is a contract between two or more parties, and the derivative derives its price from fluctuations in the underlying asset. The most common underlying assets for derivatives are stocks, bonds, commodities, currencies, interest rates, and market indexes. These assets are commonly purchased through brokerages.

An exchange platform that operates without a central authority, allowing users to trade cryptocurrencies directly with one another.

A platform that combines liquidity from various decentralized exchanges to provide users with better trading opportunities.

A digital asset is a digital entity owned by an individual or company. Examples include digital photos, videos, and songs. These assets are not tangible, meaning they have no physical presence. Instead, they are files that reside on storage device, such as a local computer or a cloud-based storage network. On our context digital assets are also classified as cryptocurrencies, crypto assets, virtual currencies, and crypto tokens.

A digital signature is a mathematical technique used to validate the authenticity and integrity of a message, software or digital document. As the digital equivalent of a handwritten signature or stamped seal, a digital signature offers far more inherent security, and it is intended to solve the problem of tampering and impersonation in digital communications.

A dividend is the distribution of a portion of the company’s earnings, decided and managed by the company’s board of directors, and paid to a class of its shareholders.

A double spend is creating two conflicting transactions, one which sends funds to a counterparty, and the other sending those same funds back to yourself. This is prevented by the Bitcoin network and double-spends are not allowed. This is arguably the primary innovation of the Bitcoin blockchain— an algorithm for preventing double-spends. However, in combination with a 51% Attack, an attacker can cause one conflicting transaction to be replaced with another if he or she controls 51% or more of the hashrate.

Very small amounts of cryptocurrency, typically considered insignificant due to transaction fees.

Electronic Money Institutions (EMI) are financial institutions granted a license to issue e-money by a local financial regulatory body like FCA (UK), BaFIN (Germany), and BNB (Bulgaria).

The preferred public-key cryptography approach for cryptocurrencies to authorize asset transfer. It is favored over older mechanisms based on prime numbers because of the relatively small size of keys and digital signatures and is based on solving equations using an elliptic curve with values in a finite field. The most common elliptic curves used for digital assets are called secp256k1 (e.g., Bitcoin, Ethereum) and ed25519. They are accompanied by an algorithm to create digital signatures that can be publicly validated.

EMI agents are third-party providers registered with the local regulatory body for the purpose of selling or marketing services of EMIs without the permission to hold customer funds.

Ether tokens are a cryptocurrency created within the Ethereum network and, like bitcoins, are tradeable digital assets. Unlike bitcoins, the focus of ether tokens is not as a store of value or payment system but rather as a system for creating and paying for the execution of smart contract logic.

Launched in 2015, Ethereum is an open-source, blockchain-based, decentralized software platform used for its own cryptocurrency, Ether. It enables SmartContracts and Distributed Applications (ĐApps) to be built and run without any downtime, fraud, control, or interference from a third party.

An exchange is a marketplace where securities, commodities, derivatives, digital assets and other financial instruments are traded. The core function of an exchange is to ensure fair and orderly trading and the efficient dissemination of price information for any securities trading on that exchange. Some exchanges facilitate trading bitcoins for fiat currency, while others enable trading among different digital assets.

An Equity instrument is the stock of the companies who look to raise money from the public by offering them a share in the company. A debt instrument such as bonds or debentures is also a way to raise money from the public. The company needs to pay a certain amount of interest to the debt holders.

Financial Regulators are national bodies that regulate and supervise the financial services and payment providers on the market. They are members of the European Banking Authority.

Financial technology (Fintech) is used to describe new tech that seeks to improve and automate the delivery and use of financial services. At its core, fintech is utilized to help companies, business owners and consumers better manage their financial operations, processes, and lives by utilizing specialized software and algorithms that are used on computers and, increasingly, smartphones. Fintech, the word, is a combination of “financial technology”.

A type of decentralized finance (DeFi) loan that is borrowed and repaid within a single transaction block.

The fear that one might miss out on a potential profit, leading to impulsive decisions to buy or invest in a particular cryptocurrency.

A fork occurs when the rules of a blockchain are changed, possibly creating two (or more) distinct digital assets. This may result from an upgrade to the features of the blockchain, a bug in the consensus algorithm, or changes to the node software. The term hard fork refers to a rules change that forces the creation of a new digital asset (if there is contentious disagreement among the network participants, or some nodes don’t upgrade in time). Alternatively, a hard fork may result in a continuation of the network structure if all the participants agree to the changes, install new node software, and update dependent software-like wallets. Soft forks are backward-compatible software updates to a digital asset blockchain. Soft forks do not result in a physical split of the blockchain into two digital assets.

Spread of negative information or rumors to create fear and uncertainty in the market, affecting the price of a cryptocurrency.

A fund is a pool of money that is allocated for a specific purpose. A fund can be established for any purpose whatsoever, whether it is a city government setting aside money to build a new civic center, a college setting aside money to award a scholarship, or an insurance company setting aside money to pay its customers’ claims.

Google Pay is a mobile payments service that utilizes Near Field Communication (NFC) to initiate secure payments between Google devices and contactless POS terminals.

A hard fork is the splitting of a digital asset’s blockchain in a backward-incompatible way, resulting in two distinct digital assets. The code and data are replicated from the original digital asset to create the new one, adding backward-incompatible changes. Once the hard fork occurs, the two digital assets are non-fungible with each other but share some transaction and ledger history. Hard forks occur for two key reasons: The first is when competing visions of a digital asset’s future development fail to reach agreement. The second is unforeseen bugs or intentional fixes to system-critical issues. When a hard fork occurs, developer and miner support are key components in determining whether the digital assets gain or lose value and relevancy. If poorly implemented, hard forks can also cause instability in the digital asset’s network, because of transactions that may be valid on both networks. When used as a feature upgrade mechanism, hard forks require everyone using the digital asset to simultaneously upgrade their node software (called a flag day). Coordination of flag days is extremely difficult and, as digital asset networks grow, may become impossible. For this reason, some digital assets such as Bitcoin do not use hard forks as an upgrade mechanism.

A hash is the function of mapping data of variable size to a new set of data at a fixed size in such a way that the reverse computation is effectively impossible. Cryptographic hash functions require specific properties to be considered secure, and different digital assets may use different hash functions. The SHA-256 hashing algorithm is used in Bitcoin, and SHA-3 with Ethereum, for example.

A mathematical function that takes an input (or 'message') and produces a fixed-size string of characters, commonly used in blockchain for security.

The computational power used in cryptocurrency mining, often measured in hashes per second (H/s), kilohashes per second (kH/s), megahashes per second (MH/s), gigahashes per second (GH/s), or terahashes per second (TH/s).

An institutional investor is a company or organization that invests money on behalf of other people. Mutual funds, pensions, and insurance companies are examples.

Issuers are members of networks (Visa, Mastercard etc.) and are authorized to issue cards by setting up BIN programs. Issuers are either banks, electronic money institutions or payment institutions.

Know Your Business is a process performed by an issuer to comply with anti- money laundering regulations and frauds⁴.

Know your Customer is a process performed by an issuer to verify the identity of individual cardholders.

A light client is a wallet which does not download and validate the full blockchain (see Node). Generally they are wallets (particularly on mobile devices) and rely on a server to supply them with transactions. In order to have full security for assets, a full node is generally required. A light client mechanism was originally proposed by Satoshi Nakamoto called Simple Payment Verification (SPV). Although it was initially deemed to be unworkable, several improvements have been made since. This is an area of active research and development.

This is the total number of coins that can be minted for a particular digital asset. Most digital assets have been designed with caps on the total supply that can be created by the network in an attempt to drive value by creating digital scarcity. A digital asset’s maximum coin supply is a fundamental feature of its design, and some have no fixed maximum supply at all. Bitcoin’s maximum coin supply is set at 21 million.

A bitcoin can be split into very small parts. Each bitcoin is divisible to the eighth decimal place, so each bitcoin can be split into 100,000,000 units (satoshis). An mBTC is one thousandth of a bitcoin, or 0.001 BTC. It is also called a millibitcoin. See also uBTC and Satoshi.

Short for memory pool, it is the collection of unconfirmed transactions waiting to be added to the blockchain.

Merchants are legal entities allowed to accept card payments using virtual or physical POS terminals provided by Acquirers.

The bank that manages the account of a merchant where funds from transactions are accumulated.

Code identifying the type of activity performed by the merchant which is often used to identify the type of transaction being performed.

A Merkle tree is a data structure that is used in computer science applications. In bitcoin and other cryptocurrencies, Merkle trees serve to encode blockchain data more efficiently and securely. Merkle Trees are a fundamental component of blockchains that underpin their functionality.

The potential profit a miner can extract from the order of transactions and their execution sequence in a block.

Mining is the method by which digital assets such as Bitcoin and Ethereum are minted and released into circulation. Mining is also the method by which transactions are incorporated into the blockchain. Finally, mining provides a mechanism to cause the unit of account to acquire a cost of production, which causes the blockchain to become a financial asset and not just a database entry. Miners perform all the same duties as nodes, and additionally attempt to solve a proof-of-work puzzle that, given a successful solution, gives them the right to publish a block of new transactions and allocate new coins to themselves. They do this by computing a hash repeatedly with different inputs, creating a proof-of-work algorithm. Mining is competitive and requires powerful dedicated hardware, energy consumption, and time.

A mining pool is a joint group of cryptocurrency miners who combine their computational resources over a network. Individually, participants in a mining pool contribute their processing power toward the effort of finding a block. If the pool is successful in these efforts and is rewarded with cryptocurrency tokens as a result, the mining pool divides up these rewards to individuals who contributed according to the proportion of each individual’s processing power or work relative to the whole group. In some cases, individual miners must show proof of work in order to receive their rewards.

Slang for a cryptocurrency's price experiencing a rapid and significant increase.

Multi-signature, or multi-sig, is a feature of bitcoin and other digital assets that requires that multiple private keys be used to sign a transaction and move funds. Practically speaking, multi-sig can be used to add an extra layer of security to digital asset transactions by requiring an additional approval from a third party before a transaction is approved. Digital asset custodians typically use multi-sig wallets and processes to help secure client funds.

A mutual fund is a type of financial vehicle made up of a pool of money collected from many investors to invest in securities like stocks, bonds, money market instruments, and other assets. Mutual funds are operated by professional money managers, who allocate the fund’s assets and attempt to produce capital gains or income for the fund’s investors. A mutual fund’s portfolio is structured and maintained to match the investment objectives stated in its prospectus. Mutual funds give small or individual investors access to professionally managed portfolios of equities, bonds, and other securities. Each shareholder, therefore, participates proportionally in the gains or losses of the fund. Mutual funds invest in a vast number of securities, and performance is usually tracked as the change in the total market cap of the fund—derived by the aggregating performance of the underlying investments.

Node is a computer that connects to Bitcoin network and uses peer-to-peer protocol that allows nodes communicating with each other within the network as well as spreading information on transactions and blocks. Information is distributed among such nodes and they are what blockchain network consists of.

A nonce is a random number that is used to vary the input to a cryptographic hash function (see Nonce), modifying the output in an unpredictable way. In the context of proof of work, the nonce is what miners repeatedly modify to find an output hash numerically smaller than the target, thereby winning the block.

An over-the-counter (OTC) market is a decentralized market in which market participants trade stocks, commodities, currencies or other instruments directly between two parties and without a central exchange or broker. Over-the-counter markets do not have physical locations; instead, trading is conducted electronically.

Payment is the transfer of one form of goods, services, or financial assets in exchange for another form of goods, services, or financial assets in acceptable proportions that have been previously agreed upon by all parties involved. Payment can be made in the form of funds, assets or services.

Payment gateways usually take care of the connectivity between acquirer and issuers for the purpose of processing payments.

Payment Card Industry requires certain security standards to be implemented by Issuers, Acquirers and Merchant that process credit card information. Obtaining PCI DSS Level 1 is required for any institution that stores and processes sensitive credit card data.

In its simplest form, a peer-to-peer (P2P) network is created when two or more PCs are connected and share resources without going through a separate server computer. A P2P network can be an ad hoc connection—a couple of computers connected via a Universal Serial Bus to transfer files. A P2P network also can be a permanent infrastructure that links a half-dozen computers in a small office over copper wires. Or a P2P network can be a network on a much grander scale in which special protocols and applications set up direct relationships among users over the Internet.

A politically exposed person (PEP) is a person who has a public status and functions. PEPs are usually subject to stricter measures due to a higher risk of potential involvement in corruption, bribery or money-laundering.

A type of cryptocurrency designed to provide enhanced privacy and anonymity for its users, such as Monero (XMR) and Zcash (ZEC).

A private key is a tiny bit of code that is paired with a public key to set off algorithms for text encryption and decryption. It is created as part of public key cryptography during asymmetric-key encryption and used to decrypt and transform a message to a readable format. Public and private keys are paired for secure communication, such as email. A private key is also known as a secret key.

A processor is a software system connected to the networks that process all transactions for the Issuer. The link between a processor and an issuer is usually a configuration setup rather than an integration effort.

Is the degree to which a business makes money. It represents what percentage of sales has turned into profits. For example if a business achieves 35% profit margin during the last quarter, it means that it had a new income of $0.35 for each dollar of sales generated.

Proof of Work (PoW) is the mechanism by which Bitcoin creates a cost of production for the unit of account and ensures immutability of the ledger in a trustless manner. Because each update to the ledger block contains a costly proof of work, this cost makes it expensive to rewrite the ledger.

A public key is created in public key encryption cryptography that uses asymmetric-key encryption algorithms. Public keys are used to convert a message into an unreadable format. Decryption is carried out using a different, but matching, private key. Public and private keys are paired to enable secure communication.

Ring signature is a type of cryptographic digital signature. In a peer-to-peer transaction, such as that used with cryptocurrencies, a ring signature enables an individual of a group to sign a transaction without revealing the identity of the actual signer.

The impact of a single event or decision in the cryptocurrency market causing a chain reaction of price movements.

A fraudulent scheme in the cryptocurrency space where the creators of a project suddenly withdraw liquidity, leaving investors with worthless tokens.

Sanction lists are shared between governments and regulators to identify people who have been involved in financial crimes for the purpose of fraud prevention and anti-money laundering control.

The ability of a blockchain network to handle an increasing number of transactions or users.

All cryptocurrencies contain an algorithmically enforced limit on the number of coins. This is different from traditional commodity and currency assets, in which either more commodities can be created (such as in gold mining) or more currency can be printed (fiat). Thus Bitcoin has a different (and stronger) form of scarcity than traditionally scarce assets.

The term “security” is a fungible, negotiable financial instrument that holds some type of monetary value. It represents an ownership position in a publicly-traded corporation—via stock—a creditor relationship with a governmental body or a corporation—represented by owning that entity’s bond—or rights to ownership as represented by an option.

Shares are units of ownership interest in a corporation or financial asset that provide for an equal distribution in any profits, if any are declared, in the form of dividends. The two main types of shares are common shares and preferred shares. Physical paper stock certificates have been replaced with electronic recording of stock shares, just as mutual fund shares are recorded electronically.

The minimum amount of funds a project needs to raise during a token sale to be considered a success.

A smart contract is a self-executing contract with the terms of the agreement between buyer and seller being directly written into lines of code. The code and the agreements contained therein exist across a distributed, decentralized blockchain network. The code controls the execution, and transactions are trackable and irreversible. Smart contracts permit trusted transactions and agreements to be carried out among disparate, anonymous parties without the need for a central authority, legal system, or external enforcement mechanism.

A type of cryptocurrency designed to have a stable value, often pegged to a fiat currency like the US Dollar.

A stock (also known as “shares” or “equity”) is a type of security that signifies proportionate ownership in the issuing corporation. This entitles the stockholder to that proportion of the corporation’s assets and earnings.

Store of Value is one of the core functions of money, alongside Medium of Exchange and Unit of Account. An asset is considered to be a good Store of Value if the purchasing power does not degrade over time.

A unit of value issued by a project on a blockchain, often representing a share of ownership or access to a specific service within that project.

This is the total number of coins that a particular digital asset has in circulation.

A transaction fee is an amount of cryptocurrency that is attached to a transaction and that incentivizes miners to process the user’s transaction. In Bitcoin, a transaction fee is not mandatory, nor is it prescribed by the code. Users can choose how much to pay for their transactions to be processed. That is why during times of network congestion, the average transaction fee goes up, as users are trying to incentivize miners to process their transactions over other users’ transactions. On the other hand, when network traffic slows down, average transaction fees also decline.

A bitcoin can be split into very small parts. A uBTC is one millionth of a bitcoin, or 0.000001 BTC. It is also called a microbitcoin.

The Bitcoin whitepaper, Bitcoin: A Peer-to-Peer Electronic Cash System, was published in 2008 by Satoshi Nakamoto. Bitcoin is revolutionizing the global payments industry and people around the world are rethinking the meaning of their money. Moreover, the underlying technology and network that process Bitcoin transactions, known as blockchain, is transforming industries as varied as banking, farming, logistics, healthcare, elections and manufacturing, to name a few58.

In the Bitcoin Whitepaper, Satoshi Nakamoto computed the probability that transactions could be reversed. The ability to reverse transactions is only possible probabilistically as long as no entity has more than 51% of the mining hash rate and supports the rule of thumb to wait 6 confirmations before considering a transaction settled, as well as the concept of a 51% attack. If any entity controls 51% or more of the hashrate, they can arbitrarily censor transactions and/or prevent progress, though they cannot directly steal funds. Theft of funds is possible by such an entity only if a counterparty follows the 6 confirmation rule, the attacker has 51% of the hash rate, and the attacker creates a double spend.