If you have been following financial news, then you have likely heard of Bitcoin. Bitcoin, and digital assets as a whole, have changed the game for investing and economics and redefined the world’s idea and understanding of currency. But, where did Bitcoin come from? That’s what has been dominating many people’s minds. Let’s examine the history of Bitcoin so we can better understand its impact on the future.
Humble Beginnings
While many people believe the idea of Bitcoin was first introduced to the public in 2009, it was actually introduced on Oct. 31, 2008 by Satoshi Nakamoto, the pseudonym for an unknown person or group of people. Nakamoto posted a message on a digital assets mailing list entitled, “Bitcoin P2P E-cash Paper.” Within the message was a link to a paper called “Bitcoin: A Peer-to-Peer Electronic Cash System,” where the concept for Bitcoin was first laid out.
Increasing in Popularity
In February 2011, Bitcoin became worth $1 USD. For the next two years, its worth rose and fell, but by April 2013, it was starting to see a huge upward trajectory. In April 2013, it was worth $200. By November of the same year, it was worth more than $1,000. By November 2017, it was worth $10,000 and then $19,650 by mid-December 2017. However, it began to fall again over the next few years due to mistrust and economic circumstances. Thankfully, its fall was only short-lived. By the end of 2020, as the pandemic swept across the world, and national banks were given permission to digital assets, Bitcoin started to gain steam again and became of much interest to a wide variety of investors.
The Future of Bitcoin and all Digital Assets
While no one can tell for certain what the future holds for Bitcoin, with innovative and exciting new investment vehicles, many sources agree that Bitcoin has a bright future. There is a lot of merit to that belief. In September 2020, Bitcoin was worth just under $12,000. Less than six months later, its value skyrocketed, surpassing over $50,000. People are beginning to trust Bitcoin and digital assets now more than ever, especially with votes of confidence and endorsements coming from enterprises like PayPal, JP Morgan, and Tesla. And, as Bitcoin is not under the purview of any national government, it can be resistant to the effects inflation has on traditional modes of currency, which is appealing to many.
With all this in mind, Bitcoin’s outlook for the rest of 2021 is strong. As adoption proliferates and corporations continuously look to solve for inflation, the adoption of treasury reserves will continue to increase. Michael Saylor said it best: “Bitcoin is pure monetary energy.” There is $1 trillion in monetary energy on the Bitcoin network. In essence, Bitcoin is a big monetary battery with no power loss.
Aside from simply Bitcoin, we could even see financial derivative products producing yield under digital assets that eclipses yield produced by traditional financial institutions. In fact, blockchain and digital assets could uproot the entire legacy financial system in the future, and that’s a good thing.
Expanding Banking With Digital Assets
Digital assets are the way of the future. With that in mind, they can be an excellent way to expand access to finance all over the world and even transform it. For example, there are currently 1.7 billion unbanked people in the world as a result of inefficient financial systems. There are 60 million people in the United States alone who do not have access to the legacy banking system for a variety of reasons. Promoting and encouraging the use of digital assets and blockchain would allow every single person access to their own wallet, which they could use to conduct commercial transactions.
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