What is Bitcoin?

Bitcoin is a form of digital currency that aims to eliminate the need for central authorities such as banks or governments. Instead, Bitcoin uses blockchain technology to support peer-to-peer transactions between users on a decentralized network.

Transactions are authenticated through Bitcoin’s proof-of-work consensus mechanism, which rewards cryptocurrency miners for validating transactions.

Launched in 2009 by a mysterious developer known as Satoshi Nakamoto, Bitcoin (BTC) was the first, and remains the most valuable, entrant in the emerging class of assets known as cryptocurrencies.