The Formation and Beginning of Bitcoin
The Formation and Beginning of Bitcoin
Bitcoin was introduced in 2008 by a paper written by Satoshi Nakamoto, a scientist or group of scientists. The paper included the idea of an electronic cash system built on blockchain, a distributed database. In 2009, the Bitcoin network was launched based on Nakamoto's software, and the first block, known as the "genesis block", was mined by Nakamoto. In the early days of Bitcoin, curiosity and interest within the community slowly increased. However, initially, Bitcoin was undervalued and not taken seriously by many people. The first transactions were usually between curious software developers and cryptocurrency enthusiasts.
Bitcoin Mining and First Transactions
Mining of Bitcoin is carried out to enable the production of new Bitcoins by solving complex mathematical problems through computers. By performing this operation, miners add new transactions to the blocks and receive Bitcoin as a reward in return. In the early days, mining could be easily done with anyone's computer. In 2010, an important turning point occurred in the history of Bitcoin. Laszlo Hanyecz, who lives in Florida, made the first real-world transaction of Bitcoin by purchasing two pizzas for 10,000 Bitcoin. This event became known as "Bitcoin Pizza Day" and had a major impact on the value of Bitcoin.
Bitcoin's Value Increase and First Exchanges
By 2011, the value of Bitcoin began to increase rapidly. The first Bitcoin exchanges emerged and people started buying and selling Bitcoin. However, at this time Bitcoin was not yet widely accepted and was viewed by many as a speculative asset. 2013 was an important year in Bitcoin's history. The value of Bitcoin increased dramatically during that year, rising from US$266 to US$1,242 per 1 Bitcoin. However, with this rapid increase in value, some regulators and financial institutions began to take a skeptical attitude towards Bitcoin.
Forks and the Bitcoin Community
Bitcoin's evolution has been shaped not only by increases in value, but also by technical advances and disagreements within the community. In 2017, a “fork” occurred among the Bitcoin community due to disagreements over scaling, resulting in a new cryptocurrency called Bitcoin Cash. This fork was due to differences in technical issues such as block size and transaction speed. Bitcoin Cash focused on offering faster transaction times and lower transaction fees by allowing larger block sizes.
Regulation and Bitcoin
Bitcoin's rise has attracted the attention of regulators. Different countries have taken various approaches towards cryptocurrencies. While some countries viewed cryptocurrencies positively, others implemented harsh regulations. Some countries, such as China, have impacted the cryptocurrency market by banning or limiting Bitcoin mining.
2017 Bitcoin Craze
2017 is another turning point in Bitcoin's history. The value of Bitcoin skyrocketed, exceeding $20,000. During this period, Bitcoin attracted the attention of many new investors and media and caused turmoil in the financial world. However, this high volatility and rapid increases in value were considered by many experts to be a sign of a bubble.
Bitcoin and the COVID-19 Pandemic
2020 has been a year full of economic uncertainties due to the impact of COVID-19, a global pandemic. During this period, many people lost their confidence in traditional financial assets and began to turn to alternative assets such as Bitcoin. Bitcoin being called "digital gold" and perceived as a store of value gained strength during this period.
