Launched in January 2009 Bitcoin has become the most recognisable digital currency in the world.
Satoshi Nakamoto, its enigmatic creator, could be a group of individuals or a single developer.
As a cryptographic peer-to-peer payment system, Bitcoin showed that digital currencies can have a place in the financial world.
What is Bitcoin and how does it work?
The Bitcoin whitepaper by Satoshi Nakamoto was published online in 2008 during the Great Recession. The whitepaper described the possibilities of digital tokens, cryptographic currencies, and an alternative to the traditional financial world.
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The Bitcoin blockchain is a shared, public digital ledger that cannot be altered or tampered with. Bundles of transactions on the network are called blocks. These chains of blocks make up the Bitcoin network and can be viewed publicly.
The Bitcoin blockchain utilises a proof of work consensus to process data. Bitcoin users can set up Bitcoin nodes on their computers to help validate transactions on the blockchain and keep the network running smoothly. As a reward for validating transactions, validators are rewarded with small amounts of Bitcoin. These validators are also known as Bitcoin miners.
Bitcoin is known for experiencing significant price spikes every few years. Cryptocurrency traders use the term “bull run” to identify these events. The most recent bull run began in late 2020 and ended in mid-2022. During the 2020 – 2022 bull run the price of one Bitcoin climbed to $69,044, a new all-time high. During Bitcoin’s first bull run the token went from lows of around $100 to £1075 in 2012.
With each bull run Bitcoin gains more popularity as the traditional financial world becomes interested in Bitcoin’s potential to become a leading financial asset and world currency.