What is Polkadot (DOT)?

Polkadot, like many post-Bitcoin cryptocurrencies, is both a token that can be bought or sold via exchanges like Coinbase and a decentralized protocol.The Polkadot protocol is designed to allow unrelated blockchains to securely talk to each other, so that value or data can flow between, say, the Ethereum and Bitcoin blockchains without any intermediary. It’s also designed to be speedy and scalable, via the use of many parallel blockchains (or “parachains”) that take much of the processing demand off of the main blockchain. The Polkadot token (DOT) serves two main functions within the Polkadot network: it’s a governance token, which allows holders to have a say in the future of the protocol, and it’s used for staking, which is the way the Polkadot network verifies transactions and issues new DOT. DOT can be bought and sold on exchanges like Coinbase as part of your investment strategy.