Bitcoin (BTC) is the world's first cryptocurrency, launched in January 2009 by an anonymous person or group known as Satoshi Nakamoto. It was designed as a peer-to-peer electronic cash system that allows people to send and receive value without relying on banks or governments.
Bitcoin runs on its own blockchain, a public ledger that records every transaction ever made. New bitcoins are created through a process called mining, which uses the Proof of Work consensus mechanism. Miners compete to solve complex mathematical puzzles, and the winner gets to add the next block of transactions to the chain and earn a block reward.
There will only ever be 21 million bitcoins in existence. This fixed supply is one of the reasons Bitcoin is often compared to digital gold and seen as a store of value and a hedge against inflation.
Key facts about Bitcoin:
- Ticker symbol: BTC
- Creator: Satoshi Nakamoto (pseudonymous)
- Consensus: Proof of Work
- Max supply: 21,000,000 BTC
- Block time: Approximately 10 minutes
You can buy Bitcoin on major exchanges like Coinbase, Kraken, or Binance. For institutional investors, a Bitcoin ETF provides exposure without holding the asset directly. To learn about scaling solutions built on top of Bitcoin, check out our guide on Bitcoin Layer 2s.