WHAT IS BITCOIN?

Bitcoin is open source, permissionless, peer to peer programmable money. The supply is hard capped at 21 million coins, which cannot be changed. The network is peer-to-peer and transactions take place between users directly, without an intermediary such as a central bank. These transactions are verified by network nodes through cryptography and recorded in a public distributed ledger called a blockchain.

The various avenues will be revealed when going down the rabbit hole, and the journey will be captivating. With this article, you can start learning about Bitcoin’s purpose, who creates the coins, and if it is real money, including more practical advice about buying bitcoin and how to keep your coins safe.

Bitcoin (with an uppercase letter B) refers to the protocol, software, and network, while bitcoin (with a lowercase b) describes the native monetary asset.

ORIGINS OF BITCOIN

Unveiled by a mysterious person or a group known as Satoshi Nakamoto, it is the first cryptocurrency ever created and was described in detail in the white paper published on October 28, 2008. A digital version of cash, which in its physical form is inherently peer-to-peer, was the hardest thing to build, and the genius of Satoshi was to combine existing technology and processes to overcome the enduring issue of double-spending digital currencies without relying on a third party.

Nobody knows the true identity of Satoshi, who disappeared in 2011, leaving the project to volunteers to expand and upgrade. Therefore, it’s fair to say that Bitcoin has no single leader and can survive and thrive without a CEO.