Bitcoin is digital money that allows people to securely send each other money on the internet, without the involvement of a bank or credit card company. It’s based on blockchain technology, which makes transactions transparent and secure. It was created by an unknown person or group, called Satoshi Nakamoto, who published a paper about it in 2008.
Bitcoin Transactions: How Peer-to-Peer Transfers Work
You can get Bitcoins through exchanges using traditional currency, or you can buy them with money from other users on a peer-to-peer network. Some people use them as a long-term investment, hoping that their value will increase over time. Others trade them, taking advantage of intra-day price movements to make profits.
It’s impossible to reverse a Bitcoin transaction once it has been recorded in the blockchain. So, if you send a Bitcoin to the wrong person, it’s gone forever. Also, it’s very difficult to connect the Bitcoin addresses that receive and send coins with real-world identities. You receive and spend Bitcoins on so-called wallet apps on your computer or smartphone. These wallets are encrypted with a unique cryptographic code and have a randomly-seeming chain of 30 characters.
Bitcoin has come a long way since the story of a message-board poster who bought two pizzas with it back in 2013. Now, it’s accepted by many large companies around the world and is a form of payment at many online retailers. Moreover, some people use it to pay for online services, while others simply hold it as an investment.