What is Bitcoin (BTC)?
Bitcoin is the first decentralized cryptocurrency, described in a 2008 white paper by the pseudonymous Satoshi Nakamoto and brought to life when its network went live in January 2009. BTC is the native unit of that network and moves directly between users without a bank or payment processor in the middle.
- Type
- Layer-1 blockchain
- Launched
- 2009
- Consensus
- Proof of Work (SHA-256)
- Max supply
- 21 million BTC
- Swap network
- Bitcoin
- Sector (Messari)
- Cryptocurrency
How Bitcoin works
Miners compete to add blocks by running SHA-256 hashing hardware in a Proof of Work process, and the chain with the most accumulated work is treated as valid. Every full node independently checks each transaction against the rules, so the ledger's history becomes harder to alter with every block stacked on top.
What BTC is used for
Most holders treat BTC as a long-term store of value and a hedge outside the traditional financial system. It is also used for cross-border transfers, as collateral in lending markets, and as a base trading pair across the crypto industry.
BTC supply
The protocol limits total issuance to 21 million BTC. New coins enter circulation only as block rewards, and that reward is cut in half roughly every four years in an event known as the halving.
Before you swap BTC
Bitcoin blocks arrive about every ten minutes on average, so a BTC deposit can take noticeably longer to confirm than deposits on faster chains. Double-check the receiving address format before withdrawing, since Bitcoin transactions cannot be reversed.