For those struggling to figure out what the heck cryptocurrency is, Linda Akkoyan, also known as "Crypto Lia," explained it in simple terms in an interview with MTL Blog.

Akkoyan has been in the crypto game since 2016 and spends her days reading, networking, investing and trading. From defining crypto to explaining reasons millennials should invest and which crypto exchanges to use, this Montreal influencer with over 34k followers on Instagram made understanding this trendy digital money easy.

You can read our interview with her below. Note that Crypto Lia's responses are based on her personal knowledge and beliefs and do not serve as financial advice.

This interview has been condensed and edited for clarity.

What is cryptocurrency?

Cryptocurrency is a digital payment system that doesn't rely on banks to verify transactions.

The coins are digital assets that are cryptographically secured and distributed on a network.

They're created in many ways — each coin has rules or a consensus protocol that regulates these transactions and the circulation of the coin. So technically, users own wallets instead of bank accounts.

Why do you think millennials should invest in crypto?

I think millennials should learn about the technology and the industry before investing.

Cryptocurrency offers an opportunity that is different from any other financial tool in the past because it's not attached to a financial institution or a state.

As millennials, we have the unique chance to live through the old and the new financial systems.

It's important for us to seize that opportunity now. It's so accessible for us, so it's very good that we get into it today.

Which cryptocurrencies do you believe the most in?

I believe most in Bitcoin. You don't need to own a full Bitcoin, you can own fractions of it. It's always good to dollar-cost average while purchasing Bitcoin, meaning investing a fixed amount regularly.

But then you have altcoins, which are all the rest, and there are over 10,000 altcoins on the market.

You have Ethereum, which is one of the largest ones and has created a huge network of projects. You have VeChain that's integrated into logistics and supply chain. Then you have Cardano, Stellar and many more.

Many of these coins have very strong technology behind them and will go up a lot in pricing. The coins are attached to a dev team, a community — they're like any other business out there.

At the end of the day, it's important to invest in values that you believe in.

How can someone stay up to date with crypto trends and information?

The biggest hubs of info out there are Reddit, Twitter, Instagram, TikTok, Youtube and Twitch.

But don't underestimate the power of socializing and networking with people in the space — that's been key for me.

For me, the best way to really understand cryptocurrency is to start using cryptocurrency.

Download a wallet, get onto an exchange. Coinbase, Crypto.com and Binance, I would say, are the three exchanges that Montrealers could use (they're also Canada-wide). For starters, I find that Crypto.com is good, it's very easy to use.

Purchase your first crypto then the process will explain itself.

What advice do you have for people looking to start investing in crypto?

It's always important to remain vigilant because there are a lot of scams in the crypto space. So, you have to be careful when it comes to opening emails. For example, you can receive an email from Crypto.com and it's not them.

And watch out for people on Instagram. There are a lot of fake accounts that are going around saying, "Invest with me, you're going to make this amount of money."

The crypto space is amazing, there are so many opportunities and it's safe. But you always have to be careful who you're dealing with.

Whatever you want to do, it's important to do it within the exchange. Be careful about all the scams out there because there are many of them.

The opinions expressed in this article are the interviewee's own and do not necessarily reflect the views of Narcity Media.

This article's cover image was used for illustrative purposes only.