What is a wallet?
A wallet is comparable to an electronic wallet or a “private” checking account. A wallet allows you to make cryptocurrency transfers and receive digital money. A transfer with Bitcoin, Monero or Ripple is basically no different from a transfer using a conventional bank account. Instead of an account number, only a receiving address is required. Because digital currencies are “transferred” directly from person to person without an intermediary, there are hardly any fees – no infrastructure and no banker has to be paid with it.
In addition, you can combine all cryptos in one wallet, regardless of which provider you bought them from. So you can keep moneros that you bought through a crypto exchange together with moneros that you bought on a marketplace in a single monero wallet. However, you usually need a separate wallet for each cryptocurrency, so you need a Bitcoin wallet for Bitcoins, a Monero wallet for Moneros and a Stellar wallet for Stellar.
You can set up a wallet on your smartphone, which is perfect for everyday use. You can also save your electronic wallet on a tablet or PC.
Important: If you have installed a wallet on your device, you should protect it with a strong password as soon as possible, otherwise hackers could steal your cryptocurrency. Make a note of your password and keep it in a safe place. You will then need the access code again to carry out a transaction.
You can also get a hardware wallet, which is comparable to a USB stick. You can then transfer your digital money to this “stick” from time to time – and save it independently of your devices.
Tip: If you lose your hardware wallet, your cryptos stored there are also lost forever. For those who are a little messy, a smartphone wallet with a strong password might be a better choice.