Jargon, explained

The words that turn up in these headlines, in plain English. Written once as a reference — not advice, and not about any particular day.

ETFA fund holding many stocks or bonds, traded like a single stock on exchanges.
airdropFree cryptocurrency tokens distributed to wallet holders, usually for promotional reasons.
basis pointOne hundredth of a percent; a unit for measuring small interest rate changes.
basis tradeBetting that the price gap between a futures contract and its underlying asset will narrow.
bridgeA service that moves cryptocurrency from one blockchain to another.
chain haltA blockchain temporarily stops processing new transactions due to a critical problem.
circuit breakerMarket halt triggered when stock prices fall too steeply too fast.
clotureA Senate procedure to end debate and force a vote on a bill.
cold storageCryptocurrency kept offline in secure vaults or hardware, not connected to the internet.
custodyA service where a third party holds and safeguards your assets.
drawdownThe decline in value from a peak to a low point.
forkA split in a blockchain where the software rules change, creating two separate versions.
funding rateFee crypto traders pay each other to keep leveraged bets open.
gas feeCost paid to process a transaction on a blockchain network.
halvingScheduled event where cryptocurrency mining rewards automatically cut in half.
hard forkA major blockchain update that breaks compatibility with older versions of the software.
impermanent lossWhen a liquidity provider loses money compared to just holding their coins.
inflowsMoney or assets moving into an investment fund or account.
layer 2A separate blockchain system that processes transactions faster and cheaper than the main network.
liquidationForced sale of assets to cover debts or meet financial requirements.
liquidityHow easily an asset can be sold quickly without losing value.
market makerA trader who buys and sells securities to provide liquidity and narrow price spreads.
mempoolThe waiting area where unconfirmed cryptocurrency transactions sit before being added to the blockchain.
open interestTotal number of active contracts in a futures or options market.
oracleA service that brings real-world data onto a blockchain.
perpetual futuresCryptocurrency contracts that never expire, allowing traders to bet on price movements indefinitely.
private keyA secret code that proves you own cryptocurrency and lets you move it.
proof of stakeA way to secure a blockchain by having people lock up money to validate transactions.
proof of workA method for confirming cryptocurrency transactions by solving difficult math puzzles.
quantitative tighteningCentral bank reducing money supply by letting bonds mature without replacement.
real-world assetsPhysical assets like real estate and commodities tokenized on blockchain.
rug pullWhen cryptocurrency project founders suddenly disappear with investors' money.
seed phraseA list of random words that unlocks access to your cryptocurrency.
short squeezeWhen a stock price rises sharply because short-sellers rush to close losing positions.
slashingPenalty that reduces a cryptocurrency validator's stake for misbehavior.
smart contractSelf-executing computer code that automatically enforces agreements on blockchain networks.
soft forkA blockchain upgrade that tightens rules in a backward-compatible way.
stablecoinA cryptocurrency designed to maintain a stable value, usually pegged to a real currency.
stakingHolding cryptocurrency to help run a blockchain network and earn rewards.
tokenizationConverting real-world assets into digital tokens on a blockchain.
total value lockedTotal cryptocurrency deposited in a DeFi platform or protocol.
validatorA participant who verifies transactions and secures a blockchain network.
whaleAn investor or trader holding very large amounts of cryptocurrency or assets.
yield farmingDepositing cryptocurrency into platforms to earn returns, like high-yield savings accounts.
zero-knowledge proofA way to prove something is true without revealing how you know it.