Created in January 2009, Bitcoin is a type of digital currency that is completely virtual. Bitcoin is like an online cash currency that you can use to buy and sell products and services from all over the world. However, some countries or stores are still not accepting it and declined to deal in
You must have heard about the term “Cryptocurrency” (currencies that are decentralized), yes Bitcoin is a type of cryptocurrency that is worth more than gold today.
The Coin in Bitcoin doesn’t refer to the fact that these are actual physical bitcoins. They are only the balances kept on a public ledger that everyone has transparent access to and can buy and sell without the need of a middle-man i.e banks. The transactions done by Bitcoin are verified by a massive amount of computing power.
The creator of the currency is still a mystery today.
How does Bitcoin work?
Bitcoin is a type of computer that can be stored in a ‘digital wallet’ app either on your smartphone, computer, or cloud. You can sell Bitcoin, part of a Bitcoin, to other people’s digital wallets, and you can also buy Bitcoins from other people. A public list or ledger called the blockchain records every single transaction done by anyone.
As mentioned above, Bitcoin is built on a distributed digital record called a blockchain to make it decentralized. As the name depicts, blockchain is a mechanism for the inter-linked body of data, made up of units called blocks. The blockchain contains almost every information about every transaction,
- Date and time
- Total value
- Buyer and seller
- A unique identifying code for each exchange.
A Digital chain of blocks (blockchain) is created when entries are strung together in chronological order.
Stacey Harris, consultant for Pelicoin, (a network of cryptocurrency ATMs) said “Once a block is added to the blockchain, it becomes accessible to anyone who wishes to view it, acting as a public ledger of cryptocurrency transactions,”.
Blockchain is decentralized. Decentralization means that it is not controlled by any third-party organization.
The largest cryptocurrency in the world
Anton Mozgovoy, Co-Founder & CEO of the digital financial service company, Holyheld said “The reason why it’s worth money is simply because we, as people, decided it has value—same as gold,”.
Not only the largest cryptocurrency, recently Bitcoin has become the third-largest currency in the world, after the US dollar and the euro in terms of total currency in circulation.
How to get Bitcoin?
You can install a Bitcoin wallet on your computer or phone. After successfully installing, it will generate your first Bitcoin address. You can also create more whenever you need.
A digital wallet is used to store Bitcoin or other digital currencies. The wallet exists either in the cloud or on a computer. The digital wallet serves as a virtual bank account that allows us to buy or sell bitcoins, pay for goods via Bitcoin and save money and fees.
Unlike bank accounts, bitcoin wallets are not insured by the FDIC.
There are mainly three simple ways to get Bitcoin,
- You can buy Bitcoin with real cash
- You can sell products and goods and let people pay you with Bitcoin
- You can mine/create Bitcoin with the help of computer
Is Bitcoin worth investing in 2021?
The reason behind its popularity is that Bitcoin works on very reliable technology and that technology does not break. Today, we are also witnessing that Bitcoin is associated with more institutional investors like Tesla, Microstrategy, etc that makes it a more reliable digital currency and increases its value.
Analysts predicted that if Bitcoin keeps going with its ongoing rate, it could reach $100K by the end of 2021.
However, the risks are always present, some entrepreneurs said that investors should be aware that Bitcoin’s value could fall as much as 80% to 90% from its all-time peak value.
Summing up for you!
Commonly abbreviated as ‘BTC’, Bitcoin has triggered the launch of many other cryptocurrencies like Ethereum and many more.
This is a simple overview of what Bitcoin is, how it works, and other main details. However, crypto knowledge and Bitcoin are not a simple thing to understand, you will need to do some good research or read some advanced notes to understand it completely.
Anyhow, you can purchase Bitcoin with cash at anyone of our Cash2Bitcoin ATMs! Click on the link to find a Bitcoin ATM Near Me.
