Bitcoin was developed by Satoshi Nakamoto, a person or group operating under a pseudonym who first described the concept in a white paper in 2008. The idea behind bitcoin, which enables safe peer-to-peer transactions online, is deceptively straightforward.
Bitcoin is decentralized: any two people, anywhere in the world, can send bitcoin to each other without the involvement of a bank, government, or other institution. In contrast to services like Venmo and PayPal, which depend on the traditional financial system for permission to transfer money and on existing debit/credit accounts.
The blockchain, which is comparable to a bank's ledger, or record of customer funds coming in and leaving out of the bank, tracks every Bitcoin transaction. It is a list of each bitcoin transaction that has ever been made, to put it simply.
The Bitcoin blockchain is dispersed across the whole network, unlike a bank's ledger. It is not governed by any corporation, nation, or other entity, and anybody can join the network.
Only 21 million bitcoins will ever exist. It is impossible to inflate or manipulate this digital currency in any way.
You don't have to purchase a full bitcoin; if a portion is all you need or want, you can do so.
Questions you may have so far:
What is “BTC”?
The initials BTC stand for bitcoin.
So is Bitcoin a cryptocurrency?
Yes, the first cryptocurrency that has gained widespread use is bitcoin, often referred to as digital currency.
What’s a one-line description for bitcoin?
Bitcoin is a form of virtual currency that makes peer-to-peer online transactions safe, simple, and secure.
How much does one bitcoin cost?
There are many websites (e.g. coinmarketcap, coingecko, etc.) that track the current price of Bitcoin.
Is there a chance to invest in Bitcoin?
BTC can be bought at a discount and sold for a profit, just like any other asset, or it can be sold for a loss if you do the opposite.