Litecoin (LTC) is a cryptocurrency that was founded by a former Google engineer in October 2011. Litecoin was based on the open-source code of Bitcoin, but with a few tweaks. Litecoin, like Bitcoin, is built on an open-source global payment network that is independent of any central authority.Litecoin varies from Bitcoin in several ways, including its higher block creation rate and its usage of the Scrypt proof-of-work algorithm. Litecoin's block time is under 2.5 minutes, and transaction fees are incredibly low, making it ideal for microtransactions and point-of-sale payments.The proof-of-work (PoW) algorithm is used by Bitcoin, Litecoin, and many other cryptocurrencies to secure their networks. Unlike Bitcoin, which employs the SHA-256 PoW hashing method, Litecoin utilizes the Scrypt PoW technique, which is less resource-intensive.