Bitcoin History
When Satoshi Nakamoto published the article titled ‘Bitcoin: A Peer-to-Peer Electronic Cash System,’ he proposed a payment method that everyone could trust. From the creation of the first Bitcoin in 2009 to the present day, we have compiled important moments for Bitcoin.
When Did Bitcoin Emerge?
Bitcoin emerged on October 31, 2008, when an individual or group using the pseudonym Satoshi Nakamoto published a whitepaper titled ‘Bitcoin: A Peer-to-Peer Electronic Cash System.’ Bitcoin was born with the principle of eliminating the need for third-party payment systems, banks, and intermediaries.
Today, the role of financial intermediaries in providing trust has become unnecessary due to the underlying technology of Bitcoin, which enables direct connection between two parties.
The Price of Bitcoin Over the Years
The notable increases in Bitcoin’s price observed in the years following the Bitcoin Halving serve as a significant indicator of the value appreciation driven by the halving mechanism, which halves Bitcoin’s supply every four years.
Since the production of the first block of the Bitcoin blockchain on January 3, 2009, there have been four instances of reward halving. In 2012, during the first halving, the reward for each block decreased from 50 Bitcoin to 25 Bitcoin. In 2016, the reward halved again to 12.5 Bitcoin per block. The third Bitcoin Halving occurred on May 11, 2020, when miners began earning 6.25 Bitcoin for each block they verify. Most recently, on April 10, 2024, the fourth halving took place, reducing the block reward to 3.125 Bitcoin. This article also delves into examining Bitcoin’s price fluctuations, both at its lowest and highest points, throughout the years.
The History and Developments of Bitcoin
October 31, 2008: The Bitcoin Technical Document was published by Satoshi Nakamoto.
January 3, 2009: The first Bitcoin block was created.
January 12, 2009: The first Bitcoin transaction occurred between Nakamoto and Hal Finney.
October 5, 2009: The New Liberty Standart exchange published the first Bitcoin exchange rate. 1 $ = 1,309.03 BTC
May 22, 2010: The purchase of 2 pizzas for 10,000 Bitcoins by user Laszlo Hanyecz on the BitcoinTalk forum was recognized as the first real Bitcoin transaction. May 22 is celebrated as “Bitcoin Pizza Day” every year.
July 2010: The first Bitcoin exchange, Mt. Gox, was established.
August 2010: Bitcoin’s market value exceeded 1 million dollars. 1 BTC = $0.5
February 9, 2011: Bitcoin was first valued equal to the US Dollar. 1 BTC = $1
April 23, 2011: With the introduction of Bitcoin sales in Euros and British Pounds, the market value reached around 10 million dollars.
June 8, 2011: Bitcoin reached a price of $31.89.
September 27, 2012: The Bitcoin Foundation was established.
November 28, 2012: The first Bitcoin Halving occurred. The Bitcoin block reward decreased from 50 BTC to 25 BTC.
March 28, 2013: Bitcoin’s market value exceeded 1 billion dollars.
April 2013: Bitcoin price surpassed $100.
May 2, 2013: The first Bitcoin ATM became operational in San Diego, California.
July 1, 2013: BtcTurk was established.
October 2, 2013: The FBI seized $3.6 million worth of Bitcoin by shutting down Silk Road.
February 2014: Mt. Gox closed down due to technical issues, reporting bankruptcy at the end of the month after reporting the theft of 744,000 Bitcoins.
January 26, 2015: Coinbase became operational in 25 states as the first regulated exchange in the US.
March 2016: The Japanese Cabinet acknowledged that virtual currencies like Bitcoin have a function similar to real money.
July 9, 2016: The second Bitcoin Halving occurred. The Bitcoin block reward decreased from 25 BTC to 12.5 BTC.
November 2016: The number of Bitcoin ATMs doubled in the last 18 months, reaching 771.
April 1, 2017: Japan recognized Bitcoin as a legal payment method.
July 1, 2017: Bitcoin underwent a blockchain fork, leading to the creation of Bitcoin Cash.
September 3, 2017: China banned companies from raising funds through ICOs.
October 12, 2017: JP Morgan CEO Jamie Dimon called Bitcoin a fraud.
October 15, 2017: China announced the closure of cryptocurrency exchanges.
October 31, 2017: CME Group announced the launch of Bitcoin futures.
November 28, 2017: Bitcoin’s price surpassed $10,000.
December 11, 2017: Bitcoin futures trading began on the Chicago (CBOE) exchange.
December 17, 2017: Bitcoin reached its all-time high of $20,089.
January 13, 2018: With the production of the 16.8 millionth Bitcoin, 80% of the total Bitcoin supply was mined.
January 30, 2018: Facebook banned cryptocurrency advertisements.
March 7, 2018: The SEC introduced registration requirements for cryptocurrency exchanges.
March 14, 2018: Google banned cryptocurrency advertisements.
March 26, 2018: Twitter announced the ban of cryptocurrency advertisements.
May 2, 2018: Goldman Sachs announced plans to open a Bitcoin investment operation.
May 11, 2020: The third Bitcoin Halving occurred. The Bitcoin block reward decreased from 12.5 BTC to 6.25 BTC.
October 21, 2020: American payment systems company PayPal announced it would start offering Bitcoin and cryptocurrency trading services to its users.
December 16, 2020: Bitcoin surpassed its 2017 all-time high, setting a new all-time high record.
December 28, 2020: Bitcoin’s market value exceeded $500 billion, surpassing Visa’s market value.
February 19, 2021: Bitcoin’s market value reached 1 trillion dollars.
September 7, 2021: El Salvador adopted Bitcoin as its official currency. Thus, Bitcoin became a legal tender for the first time in a country’s history. McDonald’s became one of the brands accepting Bitcoin payments in El Salvador.
October 31, 2021: It has been 13 years since Satoshi Nakamoto released the Bitcoin Technical Document in an email group. The Bitcoin Whitepaper is now 13 years old!
November 10, 2021: The price of Bitcoin (BTC) reached an all-time high of $69,000.
November 14, 2021: The long-awaited Bitcoin Taproot update was implemented.
December 10, 2021: The processing power of the Bitcoin network (hash rate) reached an all-time high of 181.77 TH/s.
December 13, 2021: With the production of the 18.089 millionth Bitcoin, 90% of the total supply was released.
January 3, 2022: Bitcoin is 13 years old!
January 3, 2023: Bitcoin is 14 years old!
January 3, 2024: Bitcoin is 15 years old!
April 19, 2024: The 4th Bitcoin Block Reward Halving occurred. The Bitcoin block reward decreased from 6.25 Bitcoin to 3.125 Bitcoin.
May 5, 2024: The Bitcoin blockchain surpassed 1 billion transaction count.
