Bitcoin has grown in popularity in recent years. This iconic cryptocurrency has a history behind it that is fascinating. The creation of a cryptocurrency has helped billions of people make secure, private transactions in the online marketplace. Since its inception in the mid-2000s, Bitcoin has had its ups and downs in the investing market. Here is the story behind Bitcoin.
The Man Behind Bitcoin
The person who is credited with creating Bitcoin is a Japanese national named Satoshi Nakamoto. Nakamoto is actually a pseudonym for the person responsible for starting the Bitcoin craze. It may even refer to a group of people who dreamed up and created Bitcoin. The person or people acting as Nakamoto published a paper in 2008 describing a new type of currency, Bitcoin. The name was also responsible for registering the first Bitcoin domain name on the web.
Beginnings of Bitcoin
In January 2009, Nakamoto mined the first block of Bitcoin for 50 coins. A few days later the first Bitcoin client was published. The first transaction was between Nakamoto and another IT programmer, Hal Finney, on January 12, 2009. It wasn’t until May 2010 that Bitcoin was used to pay for a retail transaction. The developers transferred 10,000 Bitcoin to buy two pizzas from a Florida delivery spot. 2010 was also the year the founder of Bitcoin, Nakamoto, left the project after mining approximately one million Bitcoin. The person who took over developing the cryptocurrency was Gavin Andresen, a software developer from Massachusetts.
Expansion
Once Andresen took over the Bitcoin project, he aimed to make it more of a mainstream payment option for the world. To promote his new cryptocurrency project, he created a giveaway called The Bitcoin Faucet. He also helped start the Bitcoin Foundation to help spread the word and expand Bitcoin’s influence. Throughout 2011, 2012, and 2013, more merchants added Bitcoin as a payment alternative. By 2015, more than 100,000 online retailers had added Bitcoin options.
Rise in Value
One of the most dynamic aspects of Bitcoin is its value in the currency market. Current values can be checked by looking at the OKX BTC to USDT price. When it was first introduced, it wasn’t worth anything. By 2011, it was equal in value to one U.S. dollar. From 2011 to 2017, the value of one Bitcoin would rise up to $20,000. However, fears about security and difficulties with Bitcoin exchanges caused the price to drop drastically from late 2017 until the end of 2018 to a low of $3,300.
A Wild Ride
By 2019, Bitcoin’s value would continue a historic rise once again. Its peak in 2019 was more than $10,000. In 2020, it would peak at more than $19,000. Bitcoin continued to skyrocket in value in 2021, finally breaking $66,000. By 2022, the value leveled around $20,000.
Bitcoin has a unique history behind it. It’s still not clear who was the person behind this popular cryptocurrency. Investors may continue to see drastic peaks and valleys in Bitcoin values over the next few years in this unpredictable market.
