Cryptocurrency : How everything started

 

A cryptocurrency is a coded string of data representing a currency unit. Peer-to-peer networks called blockchains monitor and organize cryptocurrency transactions, such as buying, selling, and transferring, and also serve as secure ledgers of transactions. A cryptocurrency is a digital or virtual currency that is meant to be a medium of exchange. It is quite similar to real-world currency, except it does not have any physical embodiment, and it uses cryptography to work.

The cryptocurrency was first mentioned in the 1980s, more precisely in 1989. when American cryptographer David Chaum published a conference paper outlining an early form of anonymous cryptographic electronic money. The concept was for a currency that could be sent untraceably and in a manner that did not require centralized entities like banks.  In 2008, Satoshi Nakamoto (a pseudonym) published a paper. It outlined a system for creating a digital currency that didn’t require trust in any third party. Satoshi Nakamoto’s paper practically launched the cryptocurrency revolution.

The history of Bitcoin was underway. Satoshi Nakamoto mined the first block of the Bitcoin network on January 3, 2009. They embedded a headline from The Times newspaper in this initial block, making a permanent reference to the economic conditions — involving bank bailouts and a centralized financial system — that Bitcoin was partly a reaction against.

This first block — which resulted in 50 bitcoins being mined — is now referred to as the Genesis Block. Bitcoin had virtually no value at this time, as well as for the first few months of its existence. Six months after bitcoin became tradeable, in April 2010, the value of one BTC was just under 14 cents. By early November, the price ‘surged’ to 36 cents before settling at around 29 cents.

This cryptocurrency has become increasingly popular with people who need to send money across borders without interference from banks or governments. Nevertheless, its rapid rise in value has made it difficult for some people to know what they should do with their Bitcoins.

In early 2010, it was the only cryptocurrency in the market. Back then, its price was just a few cents. Over the next several years, new cryptocurrencies entered the market, and their prices rose and fell along with Bitcoin’s.

Unsurprisingly, many people lost faith in cryptocurrencies as an investment vehicle. Nevertheless, beginning in late 2017, cryptocurrencies began to see unparalleled growth. As a result, the total market cap for all cryptocurrencies reached $820 billion in January 2018 before crashing later that month. In spite of this crash, the crypto market has seen steady growth throughout.

Without a doubt, 2017 was full of exciting events. As the value of Bitcoin and other cryptocurrencies skyrocketed, so did the number of schemes as well as scams targeting crypto investors.

During this same time, a new blockchain project called Ethereum was making noise in the cryptocurrency sphere, having quickly become the number two cryptocurrency by market cap since launching in July 2015. It brought smart contracts to cryptocurrency, opening a wide array of potential use cases and generating over 200,000 different projects (and counting). In contrast to Bitcoin, Ethereum enables additional platforms to launch and operate on its own chain, each with their own cryptocurrencies and their own use cases.