Decentralisation means that no single party is in charge of a system. Instead of one bank keeping the books and making every decision, responsibility is spread across many participants who follow the same rules. Decentralisation is one of the core ideas behind CryptocurrencyCryptocurrencyA digital currency secured by cryptography and recorded on a shared ledger, with no bank or government issuing or controlling it..
Centralised and decentralised
Your online bank is a centralised system. The bank stores the data, can freeze accounts and decides which payments go through. If the bank's systems fail, payments stop.
In a decentralised network such as Bitcoin, thousands of nodesNodeA computer that runs a crypto network's software, keeps a copy of the blockchain and checks that new transactions and blocks follow the rules. keep a copy of the ledger and each checks independently that the rules are followed. Nobody can change the rules on their own, because each node chooses which software it runs. The network keeps going even if many nodes drop out.
It is a matter of degree
Systems can be more or less decentralised, and that can change over time. A few examples:
- In Bitcoin, a handful of large mining pools find most blocks. In the month to mid-October 2026, the two largest pools found about 46% of all blocks.
- Some networks are in practice run by a few parties, even if they call themselves decentralised.
- When you keep crypto on a centralised exchangeCentralised exchange (CEX)A crypto exchange run by a company that carries out the trades and holds the crypto on behalf of its customers., you are trusting that company, just as you would a bank.
Why does it matter?
Decentralisation makes a system harder to censor, shut down or change. The flip side is that nobody is responsible when something goes wrong. If you send crypto to the wrong wallet addressWallet addressA string of letters and numbers you give out to receive crypto, much like a bank account number., there is no customer service desk that can reverse it.
Everything in Myntkaup Learn is written and regularly reviewed by the Myntkaup editorial team. It is for education and is not investment advice. Editorial policy. Updated 18 October 2026.