What is Bitcoin (BTC)?
Bitcoin (BTC), which emerged in 2008 under the description of “Peer-to-Peer Electronic Cash System,” is a digital currency based on blockchain technology that is not governed by any central authority and operates differently from traditional currencies. Due to being cryptographically secured, Bitcoin is referred to as a “cryptocurrency.”
What is Bitcoin (BTC)?
Bitcoin, which came into existence with the publication of a whitepaper titled “Bitcoin: A Peer-to-Peer Electronic Cash System” by an individual or group using the pseudonym Satoshi Nakamoto on October 31, 2008, 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 been eliminated due to the underlying technology of Bitcoin, which allows direct connection between two parties.
Who Invented Bitcoin?
Satoshi Nakamoto is the individual or group that created Bitcoin. The identity of Satoshi Nakamoto still remains a mystery. The name Satoshi Nakamoto was first seen in the Bitcoin Whitepaper published on October 31, 2008.
The creator of Bitcoin, Satoshi Nakamoto, concealed their identity to ensure that Bitcoin would not be associated with any person, ideology, or authority, thus allowing Bitcoin to become a cryptocurrency that belongs to everyone. Bitcoin has succeeded in becoming a globally accepted cryptocurrency with this feature among thousands of cryptocurrencies in the cryptocurrency ecosystem.
How Does Bitcoin Work?
Decentralization is one of the most important concepts related to Bitcoin. No authority, central bank, president, company, or organization controls the Bitcoin network. In today’s traditional financial system, all regulation is built on a central infrastructure. However, behind Bitcoin are participants known as ‘miners.’ Miners validate transactions on the network and ensure its security. Today, the fact that thousands of miners from all over the world participate makes the Bitcoin network decentralized, and anyone can become a miner. As a result, all Bitcoin transactions occur directly between individuals, without intermediaries.
One of the factors that makes Bitcoin valuable is its “limited supply.” The main actors of the traditional financial system such as the Dollar and Euro can be printed in unlimited numbers. However, the production of Bitcoin is limited to 21 million units. One of the most fundamental principles of financial theory states that if demand increases while supply does not increase at the same rate, the price will rise. Since 2008, while demand for Bitcoin has been continuously increasing, the limited supply confirms these basic assertions.
How Does the Bitcoin Network Ensure Its Security?
The fact that the Bitcoin blockchain operates on a decentralized network is one of the factors that make Bitcoin secure because it is not tied to a central authority. Thus, Bitcoin is not susceptible to any manipulation that could be carried out by an authority.
All transactions recorded in the blockchain are stored in a distributed ledger model among Bitcoin users. Therefore, even if a user’s computer is attacked or records are tampered with, it is not possible for other users’ records to be affected by this.
In addition to the basic features of Bitcoin, there are some technical elements that ensure the security of Bitcoin. All transactions are encrypted using cryptography. All data connected to the blockchain leaves a trace on the blockchain. Thus, even the smallest transaction causes a change in the algorithm.
Important Events in Bitcoin History
January 3, 2009 — The Genesis Block of Bitcoin, referred to as the “Genesis Block,” was created by Satoshi Nakamoto, marking the first block of Bitcoin.
January 12, 2009 — The first Bitcoin transaction occurred between Satoshi Nakamoto and Hal Finney.
May 22, 2010 — The payment of 10,000 Bitcoins by a user named Laszlo Hanyecz for 2 pizzas on the BitcoinTalk forum was recognized as the first real Bitcoin transaction. May 22 is celebrated annually as “Bitcoin Pizza Day.”
November 28, 2012 — The first Bitcoin Halving occurred, reducing the Bitcoin block reward from 50 BTC to 25 BTC.
July 9, 2016 — The second Bitcoin Halving occurred, reducing the Bitcoin block reward from 25 BTC to 12.5 BTC.
May 11, 2020 — The third Bitcoin Halving occurred, reducing the Bitcoin block reward from 12.5 BTC to 6.25 BTC.
February 19, 2021 — Bitcoin’s market value exceeded 1 trillion dollars.
September 7, 2021 — Bitcoin was adopted as the official currency of El Salvador, making it the first country to recognize Bitcoin as legal tender.
November 10, 2021 — The price of Bitcoin (BTC) reached an all-time high of $69,000.
November 14, 2021 — The 3-month implementation period for the Bitcoin Taproot Upgrade was completed, and the Taproot Upgrade was activated at block 709,632.
How Is Bitcoin Produced?
In blockchain technology, cryptocurrency mining is performed by finding solutions to complex mathematical problems using specialized hardware devices. Bitcoin mining involves verifying Bitcoin blocks, adding them to the chain using the processing power of devices, and producing Bitcoin as a reward. Individuals who produce Bitcoin are called miners.
The first miner to verify a Bitcoin block earns newly generated Bitcoins and transaction fees from the verified block.
❖ All transactions carried out in the Bitcoin blockchain are recorded from the first Bitcoin block onwards. All transfers are anonymous but not completely confidential.
Why is Bitcoin Valuable?
- Bitcoin is the first cryptocurrency created.
- The total supply of Bitcoin is limited to 21 million units.
- The Bitcoin blockchain is decentralized.
- The individuals who developed Bitcoin are anonymous.
- Bitcoin has the highest market value among cryptocurrencies.
What is Bitcoin Halving?
The Genesis Block is the first block created in the blockchain and does not contain information about previous blocks. In the Genesis Block, 50 Bitcoins were generated as the block reward. However, this reward was generated by Satoshi Nakamoto in an unspendable and unmovable form.
The Bitcoin block reward is used to define the new Bitcoins awarded to cryptocurrency miners for successfully processing each block in the blockchain network. The initial block reward was halved to 25 BTC on November 28, 2012, then to 12.5 BTC on July 9, 2016, and further halved to 6.25 BTC during the halving event on May 11, 2020. Most recently, the block reward was halved to 3.125 BTC on April 10, 2024.
The process of the new Bitcoin production, which occurs every 10 minutes, being halved at specific intervals, is called Halving or Bitcoin Halving. The reward halving occurs every 210,000 blocks and takes place approximately every four years.
How to Buy Bitcoin on BtcTurk | Global?
Step 1: Log in to your BtcTurk | Global account
Visit the BtcTurk | Global platform and log in using your registered email address and password. If you don’t have an account, signing up is quick and easy — just click “Sign Up” and complete the registration process.
Step 2: Deposit Cryptocurrency
● Navigate to the “Deposit” section.
● Select the cryptocurrency you wish to deposit.
● Follow the instructions to complete your deposit securely.
Step 3: Buy Bitcoin
Once your account is funded, you can purchase Bitcoin:
● Choose between the Basic Trade or Advanced Trade options, depending on your experience level.
● Select a BTC trading pair.
● Enter the amount you want to buy and confirm the transaction.
The Emergence of Bitcoin: Bitcoin Whitepaper
Bitcoin first came to light through an email sent to a cryptography mailing list on October 31, 2008, by an individual or individuals using the pseudonym Satoshi Nakamoto.
In the document prepared to introduce an online payment method called “Bitcoin: A Peer-to-Peer Electronic Cash System,” Satoshi Nakamoto did not mention Bitcoin at all.
In the Bitcoin whitepaper, Satoshi outlined the technical details of the blockchain, proposing a reliable online payment method without the need for any central authority. Bitcoin was both the name of this new payment system and its currency. Although the title of the document began with Bitcoin, the word “Bitcoin” was not used within the document.
The Limited Supply of Bitcoin
One reason for likening Bitcoin to digital gold is that both have limited resources. However, while gold is indeed a limited resource, we do not have precise information about what percentage of the total supply has been mined, processed, and circulating in the market, and therefore, the remaining reserve amount. In contrast, we know when and how much Bitcoin will be produced and how many can be produced in total in which year. A total of 21 million Bitcoins can be mined, and this will be completed by 2140.
The Importance of Bitcoin Dominance
Since its inception in 2009, Bitcoin has been the largest player in the cryptocurrency market. Despite the plethora of cryptocurrencies in the market, no cryptocurrency has managed to surpass Bitcoin in terms of market dominance.
Bitcoin Market Dominance, or Bitcoin Dominance, is a metric that expresses the ratio of Bitcoin’s market value to the overall value of the cryptocurrency market.
The Importance of Bitcoin Volume
Bitcoin trading volume refers to the total value of Bitcoin bought and sold within a specific period. Bitcoin volume indicates how much has changed hands by investors within a given time frame. Bitcoin trading volume can be calculated for 24 hours, daily, weekly, monthly, yearly, or longer periods.
Evaluating Bitcoin trading volume can benefit potential investors in making investment decisions. Understanding and comparing how much interest investors have shown in Bitcoin in the past can be important for predicting its future value.
Bitcoin Market Cap
Market Cap is calculated by multiplying the market price of an asset by its circulating supply.
Bitcoin’s market cap is calculated in the same way.
What is the Main Purpose of Bitcoin?
Users should be responsible for their financial transactions and their own money.
Banks, companies, government institutions, and agencies should be removed as intermediaries in these financial transactions.
Value transfers should be available 24/7, not just during office hours.
Transaction fees should be much lower.
Transactions should be anonymous and transparent.
Users should be able to deposit, withdraw, send, and receive their money independently of any central authority.
A currency should be produced against inflation by keeping its total supply limited.
How to Store Bitcoin?
Bitcoin is generated and stored in the Bitcoin blockchain. Users transfer ownership of Bitcoin, not Bitcoin itself. Changes in ownership of Bitcoin are recorded in the blockchain. Therefore, Bitcoin is stored in the blockchain, but the private keys used to transfer ownership of Bitcoin are stored in software called Bitcoin wallets.
How Was the Bitcoin Logo Created?
The Bitcoin logo we commonly encounter today has gone through many different proposals and developments to reach its final form.
The Bitcoin logo has undergone many changes over the years since its creation. This process, which began with Satoshi Nakamoto, concluded with a development proposal from a user named Bitboy, and the logo has been finalized and used in its current form.
Important Updates in the Bitcoin Blockchain
One of the most significant updates implemented in the Bitcoin blockchain is the Bitcoin Segwit update, which was first released on December 21, 2015. This development proposal did not receive sufficient support from the mining community for a long time. The proposal, released on March 12, 2017, initiated the process to make the activation of the Segwit update mandatory. The Segwit update, released as a soft fork on August 23, 2017, was successfully implemented.
The Taproot update, implemented in the Bitcoin blockchain in 2021, was initially introduced by Greg Maxwell from the Bitcoin Core development team in January 2018.
For Taproot to be usable in the Bitcoin blockchain, a 3-month activation process called Speedy Trial began on May 1, 2021. At the end of the 3-month period, the activation process was completed on November 14, 2021, and the Bitcoin Taproot update was activated at block 709,632.
The Bitcoin blockchain continues to be developed with contributions from independent developers. The network, which is entirely decentralized, is open to everyone’s participation and development proposals. Software developers continue to propose development suggestions to improve the scalability and efficiency of the Bitcoin network.
The First Bitcoin Transfer
The first transfer using Bitcoin was made on January 12, 2009. This transfer occurred between Satoshi Nakamoto and Hal Finney.
In the 170th block of the Bitcoin blockchain, Satoshi Nakamoto sent 10 Bitcoins from the address 12cbQLTFMXRnSzktFkuoG3eHoMeFtpTu3S to the address 1Q2TWHE3GMdB6BZKafqwxXtWAWgFt5Jvm3, which is known to belong to Hal Finney.
While 10 of the total 50 Bitcoins in Satoshi Nakamoto’s wallet were transferred to Hal Finney’s wallet, the ownership of the remaining 40 Bitcoins was transferred to another address in Nakamoto’s wallet.
This first transaction, like all Bitcoin transactions, is publicly recorded in the Bitcoin blockchain with its details visible to everyone.
