Overview
The first Bitcoin came into existence on 3rd January 2009, and its creator is Satoshi Nakamoto. Bitcoin can be purchased and can be used as a type of investment. Bitcoin’s name was more popular when the price of Bitcoin moved towards an upward trend in 2017, which is a phenomenal increase. Since Bitcoin’s price volatility is very high, few countries have banned this cryptocurrency from buying and selling it.
What is Bitcoin?
Bitcoin is considered as a form of digital currency that has been created and held electronically in a computer; these are not paper money like the traditional currencies such as Dollars, Yen, or Euros, that are controlled by authorities or central banks. Anyone who has a computer can get a Bitcoin address to transfer or receive Bitcoins immediately. This cryptocurrency is anonymous, and it allows you to maintain several addresses while setting this up does not require any personal information.
How Bitcoin Works?
Bitcoin has a transfer of value, and it is used as a method of payment that is not controlled by government authorities such as central banks that control the money supply and the current availability in the global market. Bitcoin transfers can be made through the computer instantly with low transaction fees. Moreover, Bitcoins are fixed assets as there are only 21 million coins that can be mined; and this can be done by solving complex mathematical problems that result in Bitcoin mining. One of the major inventions that came along with Bitcoin is the distributed ledger technology known as the Blockchain technology.
Few Facts you should know about Bitcoin.
We have given you a few facts about Bitcoin that you should know about. Let us look into these, which will help you to have a clear picture of this blockchain-based cryptocurrency.
- Bitcoins are limited
Bitcoins are limited in quantity; there are only 21 million Bitcoins that can be mined and circulated. The Bitcoin value is high because it is limited, just like any precious stone or gold. Currently, 18.5 million Bitcoins are already in circulation; when the new blocks are mined, the number will increase.
- Bitcoin Halving
Bitcoin halves every four years, and the mining reward will be halved after every 210000 blocks. Earlier, when Bitcoin was introduced, the mining reward was 50 BTC; since then, three halves have taken place, and now, the reward is 6.25 BTC. This is because the Bitcoin mining algorithm changes the complexity after the 2016 blocks, so the average time is 10 minutes for 1 block.
- First Legal Purchase with Bitcoin is Pizza
Initially, Bitcoin was used to purchase pizza, and there is a dedicated day to it. On 22 May 2010, the first transaction with Bitcoin was carried out when a programmer Laszlo Hanyecz traded 10,000 Bitcoins successfully for a pizza. In 2017 November, 10,000 Bitcoins are valued at $99 million. As of today, people are using Bitcoins to buy goods and services, and several businesses are accepting cryptocurrencies as a form of payment, such as overstock.com Expedia, Newegg, and Dish, etc.
- The identity of the Creator is unknown.
In 2009 a person named Satoshi Nakamoto created Bitcoin, and still, now his identity is anonymous; there is no evidence that he is alive or dead, and people had communicated with him only through forums and emails. Satoshi Nakamoto’s Bitcoin wallet has more than 980,000 Bitcoins which makes him one of the wealthiest people in the world.
- Federal Bureau of Bitcoin
In the past, one of the largest holders of Bitcoin was the US government, when the FBI in 2013 shut down silk road, a darknet site where anybody could buy drugs or illegal goods and services. It was taken over by the FBI, where one wallet contained 144,000 Bitcoins. Several investors had made a bid on the Bitcoins that were seized by the government.
- Bitcoin Fork
Bitcoin experienced a hard fork as a consequence of several issues like a restricted number of transactions that are processed per second. The meaning of a fork in the cryptocurrency domain is to split the chain with the same rules or with the new rules. There are two ways of forking such as soft fork and hard fork.
- Bitcoin is volatile
The Bitcoins price can increase or decrease unpredictably, even for a short period, because of its volatility. It is not advisable to keep your entire savings invested in Bitcoin; you should know that Bitcoin is a high-risk asset, and it is not advisable to invest the money that you cannot afford to lose. Several people receive payments through Bitcoin, and they convert them to their local currency as a safety measure.
Final Thoughts
Bitcoin has become one of the well-known digital currencies, and its value continues to increase every day. It has become more popular because of its anonymity; Bitcoins are used for legal purchases and everyday transactions; they can also be used to buy plane tickets with a discount. Bitcoin is becoming one of the mainstream investment options, and people are investing in Bitcoins considering that its value will increase in the future. If you are planning to invest or trade in Bitcoin, you can check Bitcoin Future Review. Bitcoin Future App is an automated trading platform & recognized as a best trading robot for Bitcoin and other cryptocurrencies; it is also available for all investors in the crypto market. Even though people are moving towards Bitcoin, it has its own set of challenges and risks as it is being adopted and used by people globally.