The difficulty of mining Litecoin is set in such a way that, on average, one block is generated every 2.5 minutes, which is four times faster than Bitcoin, allowing for quicker transaction confirmations. A transaction is typically considered complete after 6 blocks, or 15 minutes.
The issuance of Litecoin is algorithmically limited. The maximum amount of litecoin that will be in circulation exceeds the maximum number of bitcoin by 4 times (84 million vs 21 million). The initial reward for each block is 50 litecoin. The rate of generation of litecoin is halved every 840,000 blocks, which is 4 times more blocks than with Bitcoin. Since Litecoin blocks are formed 4 times faster than Bitcoin blocks, this means that their issuance and reward rates will be similar. For example, by 2020, about 3/4 of all litecoin will have been generated.
Litecoin can be exchanged for both fiat money and other cryptocurrencies. Exchanges primarily take place on online trading platforms. Reversible transactions (e.g., via bank cards) are usually not used for purchasing Litecoin due to concerns about chargebacks, as transactions involving the transfer of Litecoin itself are irreversible.
