In mid-2008, with the world in the middle of a financial crisis,
the domain bitcoin.org was registered. Later that year, a person or group under the pseudonym
Satoshi Nakamoto released the Bitcoin Loophole that detailed how peer-to-peer digital currency would work.
In 2009, the first ever Bitcoin would be mined. In the early days, Bitcoin was worth a few cents to the dollar.
A major milestone would be achieved in May 2010 when 10000 Bitcoins were used to purchase two pizzas by a Bitcoin enthusiast, an amount that would be worth millions of dollars in the present day. The date May 22nd is still celebrated as Bitcoin Pizza Day in the Bitcoin community.
2010 was also the year that Bitcoin exchanges, that allowed investors to buy and sell the cryptocurrency, started to appear.
The growing awareness of the disruptive quality of Bitcoin also inspired the development of other cryptocurrencies and blockchain projects. Bitcoin reached another major milestone in 2013 when the value of all available coins in circulation topped $1 billion.
There was no stopping Bitcoin and the cryptocurrency wave now. At its peak in 2017,
Bitcoin reached a market capitalization of over $334 billion as the cryptocurrency price hit a high of just below $20,000.
Over the course of its history, Bitcoin and other cryptocurrencies have faced challenges such as exchange hacking and regulatory pressures.
But they have demonstrated resilience in the face of adversity. And with ever growing acceptance globally as well as major corporations, such as Facebook joining the space, cryptocurrencies are here to stay, and even dominate!