Bitcoin is one of the earliest cryptocurrencies to use blockchain technology in facilitating peer-to-peer payments. Through a decentralized network, bitcoin offers a reasonably low transaction fee compared to popular payment gateways.
Like traditional currencies, such as the U.S. dollar, Bitcoin has value relative to other currencies and physical goods. Whole Bitcoin units can be subdivided into decimals representing smaller units of value. Currently, the smallest Bitcoin unit is the Satoshi or 0.00000001 Bitcoin. The satoshi can’t be broken into smaller units.
How Does Bitcoin Function:
Bitcoin is a cryptocurrency, meaning it’s supported by a source code that uses highly complex algorithms to prevent unauthorized duplication or creation of Bitcoin units. The code’s underlying principles, known as cryptography, are based on advanced mathematical and computer engineering principles. It’s virtually impossible to break Bitcoin’s source code and manipulate the currency’s supply.
Although it was preceded by other virtual currencies, it is known as the first modern cryptocurrency. That’s because Bitcoin is the first to blend certain key features shared by most subsequently created cryptocurrencies.
Bitcoin’s Origins And Early Development:
The first public record of Bitcoin dates to October 2008, when a pseudonymous person or organization known as Satoshi Nakamoto published a white paper with the technical outlines for a new, decentralized cryptocurrency. Nakamoto’s identity remains unknown, though speculation centers on a handful of U.S.-based individuals (or various groupings thereof) who were active in the cryptocurrency movement of the 1990s and 2000s. Nakamoto released Bitcoin’s open-source code in January 2009, marking the beginning of public mining and trading, and ceased public communication shortly thereafter.
Bitcoin was built on the theoretical and technical foundations of Bit Gold and b-money, a contemporaneous cryptocurrency model that was never developed. Aside from being the first cryptocurrency to gain widespread traction outside the cloistered ultra-libertarian movement, its biggest claim to fame is as the first cryptocurrency marked by totally decentralized control – in other words, no user is more influential than any other.
Some Amazing Benefits and Disbenefits Of Using It:
Advantages:
- Greater Liquidity Relative to Other Cryptocurrencies
- Increasingly Wide Acceptance as a Payment Method
- International Transactions Easier Than Regular Currencies
- Generally Lower Transaction Fees
- Anonymity and Privacy Relative to Traditional Currencies
- Independence From Political Agents and Creators
Disadvantages:
- Exposure to Bitcoin-specific Scams and Fraud
- Black Market Activity May Damage Reputation and Usefulness
- Susceptible to High Price Volatility
- No Chargebacks or Refunds
- Potential to Be Replaced by Superior Cryptocurrency
