24 Apr BITCOIN OWNS DIGITAL CURRENCY
In 2008, the way the world earns, spends, saves, and even thinks about the concept of money was challenged in a major way by an anonymous person or group that goes by the pseudonym, Satoshi Nakamoto.
Satoshi Nakamoto’s whitepaper, “Bitcoin: A Peer-to-Peer Electronic Cash System,” proposed a new form of electronic payment that would eliminate the need for intermediaries like banks or payment processors. In other words, Bitcoin is decentralized, meaning it is not controlled by any government, financial institution, or individual.
One of the key features of Bitcoin is its limited supply. The maximum number of bitcoins that can ever exist is 21 million, and as of March 2023, over 19 million bitcoins have already been mined.
Goldman Sachs famously declared Bitcoin “digital gold” because, like actual gold, it is “mined” and thought to be a store of value. Its value remains stable rather than declining over time and it hedges against inflation. However, there has been much debate recently about whether or not this is actually true.
Whether you are a crypto advocate or opposer, the novelty of this financial technology, coupled with its rapid adoption and growth, has unequivocally allowed Bitcoin to “own” the concept of digital currency.
With a current price of over $30,000 USD, Bitcoin is widely recognized today as the most valuable and well-known cryptocurrency because it was the first successful implementation of a decentralized digital currency system.