Bitcoins have become a very well-known and popular form of currency over time. However, what exactly is Bitcoin? The following article will review the ins and outs of this coin that came out of nowhere and spread like wildfire. What makes it different from regular coins?
Bitcoin is a digital currency, it is not printed and never will be. They are maintained electronically and no one has control over them either. They are produced by individuals and businesses, creating the first form of money known as cryptocurrency. While regular currencies are seen in the real world, Bitcoin goes through billions of computers around the world. From Bitcoin in the United States to Bitcoin in India, it has become a global currency. However, the biggest difference it has from other currencies is that it is decentralized. This means that no particular company or bank owns it.
Who created it?
Bitcoin was proposed and created by Satoshi Nakamoto, a software developer. He saw it as an opportunity to have a new currency in the free market of the central authority.
Who prints it?
As mentioned above, the simple answer is no one. Bitcoin is not a printed currency, it is a digital currency. You can even transact online with Bitcoins. So you can’t produce unlimited Bitcoins? Absolutely not, Bitcoin is designed to never “mine” more than 21 million Bitcoins in the world at once. Although they can be broken down into smaller amounts. One hundred millionth of a Bitcoin is called a “Satoshi”, after its creator.
What is Bitcoin based on?
For mainly appearances and conventional use, Bitcoin is based on gold and silver. However, the truth is that Bitcoin is actually based on pure mathematics. It also has nothing to hide since it is open source. So anyone can check it out to see if it works as it says.
What are the features of Bitcoin?
1. As mentioned above, it is decentralized. It is not owned by any particular company or bank. All programs that mine Bitcoins form a network and work together. The theory was, and it worked, that if a network goes down, the money still flows.
2. It is easy to set up. You can set up a Bitcoin account in seconds, unlike the big banks.
3. It’s anonymous, at least the part that your Bitcoin addresses are not linked to any kind of personal information.
4. It’s completely transparent, all transactions using Bitcoins are displayed in a big graph, known as the blockchain, but no one knows it’s you because there’s no name attached.
5. Transaction fees are tiny, and compared to a bank’s fees, the rare, small fees that Bitcoin charges are next to nothing. It’s fast, very fast. Wherever you send money too, it will usually arrive within minutes of processing. It’s non-repudiable, meaning once you send your Bitcoins, they’re gone forever.
Bitcoin has greatly changed the world and how we see money. Many people wonder if it is possible to live off Bitcoins. Some have even tried. Still, Bitcoin is a part of our economy now, a unique type of currency, and it’s not going away anytime soon.