BITCOIN

Bitcoin (BTC) is the world’s first open-source, peer-to-peer cryptocurrency developed by a pseudonymous person or group of people under the name of Satoshi Nakamoto in 2008. The identity of Satoshi Nakamoto remains a mystery. The crypto is run on distributed ledger technology, also known as blockchain. Bitcoin allows for lower transaction fees than traditional online payment systems, and is decentralized, unlike government-backed currencies. Bitcoin is the world’s largest cryptocurrency by market capitalization and has a limit of 21 million coins. The cryptocurrency uses a proof-of-work protocol to enable security, privacy, and legitimacy of monetary transactions. The issuance of Bitcoin requires mining, where programmers solve a difficult cryptographic puzzle to be able to mine Bitcoin, which earns them a reward. Bitcoin remains the most popular cryptocurrencies, all other cryptocurrencies are known as altcoins.