Bitcoin is a cryptocurrency,an innovative payment network, invented in 2008 by an unknown person or group of people using the name Satoshi Nakamoto and started in 2009.
Bitcoin is a form of digital currency that is created and held electronically on a computer. Bitcoins are not paper money like dollars, euros, or yen controlled by central banks or monetary authorities. Bitcoin is the first example of a cryptocurrency, which is produced by people and businesses all over the world using advanced computer software that solves mathematical problems.
Bitcoin has several attributes that set it aside from traditional currencies as a pan-global means of exchange. Central banks or monetary authorities do not control the number of Bitcoins, and it is decentralized, making it global. Anyone with a computer can set up a Bitcoin address to receive or transfer bitcoins in seconds. Bitcoin is anonymous, and the cryptocurrency allows users to maintain multiple addresses, and setting up an address requires no personal information.
How Bitcoin Works
Bitcoin is a method of payment or transfer of value that is independent of governmental authorities like central banks that traditionally control the money supply and the availability of currency in the global market. Transfers are made via computer immediately with low transaction fees.
Bitcoin is a fixed asset because there are only 21 million coins. Solving the advanced mathematical problems results in the mining of Bitcoins. However, Bitcoin is divisible so the growth potential for the exchange medium is unlimited. One of the most interesting inventions that came alongside Bitcoin is blockchain or distributed ledger technology. DLT has amazing potential when it comes to traditional operations and settlement ramifications for businesses in the financial as well as other industries.