Bitcoin is a cryptocurrency.
Bitcoin is a cryptocurrency that was created in 2009 . It is electronic ( virtual ) and unofficial money that can be used as a medium of exchange in commercial operations.
The creation of bitcoin is attributed to Satoshi Nakamoto , who would be a Japanese man. However, there are those who believe that Nakamoto does not actually exist but is another person or even a group of individuals in charge of carrying out the development.
Bitcoin (with an initial capital letter) is generally used when we want to refer to the network and protocol that supports the virtual currency. On the other hand, when the notion of bitcoin is used (without initial capital letter), this currency itself is referred to.
How Bitcoin works
The operation of Bitcoin is decentralized : there is no state authority that is responsible for issuing or supporting the monetary unit. Furthermore, there are no intermediaries between those who decide to use bitcoins.
It can be said, in summary, that Bitcoin is a protocol that uses peer-to-peer ( P2P ) technology to create a unit of commercial exchange without the intervention of a bank or a central authority. Both the issuance of bitcoins and their management are developed collectively. As a protocol, Bitcoin is open source and its design is done publicly.
Bitcoin can be defined as a virtual currency.
Storage and use
Bitcoins are stored in digital wallets that can be carried on mobile devices, computers, or on the Internet .
To obtain bitcoins, it is possible to acquire them at an exchange house using a bank account, buy them from another user or receive them as a means of payment. Bitcoins, in turn, allow you to pay for numerous products and services.
Advantages and disadvantages of bitcoin
If the bitcoin cryptocurrency has begun to be used forcefully in recent years and its system continues to grow and grow, it is due to the set of advantages that are associated with it:
- It leaves aside the banks, since there is no intervention by any type of central bank.
- Allows transactions to be made in real time.
- At no time does it give the possibility that debt could be generated.
- Unlike any currency of a given country, it is impossible for bitcoin to be counterfeited.
- Its use is anonymous. This circumstance gives the possibility that it can even be used in countries where totalitarian regimes exist.
- Its use is safe and transparent. It not only has a strong cryptographic system behind it but also a reliable protocol. Likewise, you should know that all the transactions that are carried out have a free access record.
- It works 24 hours a day.
- On the contrary, among the disadvantages are that there is a guarantee of acceptance and that it becomes a very appropriate currency for speculation.