In a short period of time it has created a lot of volatility in the market and caused a lot of controversy, but bitcoin remains attractive to a large number of investors.
Even the most tech-savvy among us have a hard time learning about Bitcoin. This digital currency is a hot topic and is discussed frequently in the investment world. So there’s a lot you should know about it.
For starters, here is a simple explanation of bitcoin: Bitcoin is a digital currency that is not controlled by a central authority such as a government or a bank.
It was created by “bitcoin miners” – people who use computers and specialized software to perform algorithms to conduct transactions, ensure the safety of this currency’s system and accumulate. Bitcoin in exchange. Proponents say bitcoin allows transactions over the internet to become more secure by recording and storing all transaction information.
Although it has only been in trading for 8.5 years, bitcoin is considered the oldest and most valuable digital currency in history. In a short period of time it has created a lot of volatility in the market and caused a lot of controversy, but bitcoin remains attractive to a large number of investors.
Bitcoin was born in 2008 when its “father” – a person nicknamed Satoshi Nakamoto published a document describing a peer-to-peer digital system called bitcoin. .
Nakamoto then left the project in 2010 and disappeared, but other “miners” have continued the work. Bitcoin’s birthday is January 3, when Nakamoto mined the first 50 bitcoin units.
Until now the true identity of the person behind bitcoin has not been revealed. Newsweek once claimed to have found the identity of the “father of bitcoin” in 2014, Dorian Street resident Satoshi Nakamoto. However, the man denied it.
By 2015, an Australian businessman Craig Wright claimed to be the creator of bitcoin but could not provide convincing proof. Late last year, he continued to give evidence and after The Economist approached Wright, he drew the conclusion that this is most likely Satoshi Nakamoto. Whoever Nakamoto is, this is definitely a very rich person because it is estimated that this founder has “mined” millions of bitcoins since the early days.
The first bitcoin-related transaction took place on May 22, 2010 when a programmer named Laszlo Hanyecz said he had just successfully traded 10,000 bitcoins to buy a pizza. As of September 20, 2017, 10,000 bitcoins is worth about million and this is the most expensive pizza in the world.
This may sound hard to believe, but it is clear that people can still use bitcoin to buy and sell goods. Many large businesses now accept payments in this virtual currency including Overstock.com, Expedia, Newegg and Dish. Peach Aviation has become the first airline in Japan to accept airfares in Bitcoin as the low-cost airline tries to attract Asian customers.
There was a time when the US government was one of the biggest holders of bitcoin. In 2013, after the FBI shut down Silk Road – a dark web where people could buy drugs and other illegal goods and services, the US government took over the bitcoin wallets that the website this management, one of which holds about 144,000 bitcoin units. These bitcoins were later put up for auction and there are still auctions of bitcoins confiscated from illegal activities.
In early 2014, bitcoin suffered a heavy blow following the Mt. Gox in Japan was attacked. At that time, the stolen bitcoins were worth 0 million. It was the largest bitcoin theft in history and it raised many concerns about its safety.
Warren Buffett, the world’s most famous investor, has no interest in bitcoin. One of the rarest times he talked about this virtual currency on CNBC was as follows: “Stay away from it, it is a kind of illusion. The idea of holding a huge amount of virtual currency is just a joke to me.”
Another billionaire investor, Jamie Dimon – CEO of JPMorgan Chase, offered even stronger criticism of bitcoin. “You can’t have a business where people invent a currency that just exists in the air. It will never end well… A lot of people will suffer and then there is government intervention.”
However, not all billionaires have turned away from bitcoin. Mark Cuban once said that the value of bitcoin is inflated, but he recently invested in a bitcoin venture fund. As for billionaire Richard Branson, he is quite optimistic about the future of this currency.
One of the most notable bitcoin investors is Cameron and Tyler Winklevoss – Harvard graduate twins who sued Mark Zuckerberg for claiming that Facebook was born out of their idea.
In 2013, the twins invested million in bitcoin, the equivalent of 1% of bitcoins in circulation at the time. These two investors even submitted to the SEC to create a bitcoin exchange-traded fund, but this proposal was rejected earlier this year.
Besides, businessman and investor Erik Finman is also one of the famous bitcoin investors. He invested ,000 in bitcoin when he was 14 years old and is now a millionaire.
Many celebrities in the entertainment industry have also expressed interest in this virtual currency. Actor and Goop founder Gwyneth Paltrow suggests using Abra, a bitcoin wallet. Meanwhile, Ashton Kutcher, Nas, and Floyd Mayweather have all invested in bitcoin startups.
In August 2017, Fidelity Investments became a rare highlight among financial institutions wanting to hold bitcoin and many other cryptocurrencies. The company allows customers using Fidelity’s website to track their bitcoin holdings through the digital wallet provider Coinbase.