Assets, Bitcoin

How Many Bits Is a Bitcoin?

A Bitcoin is a digital asset and a payment system invented by Satoshi Nakamoto. Transactions are verified by network nodes through cryptography and recorded in a public dispersed ledger called a blockchain.

Bitcoin is unique in that there are a finite number of them: 21 million.

Bitcoins are created as a reward for a process known as mining. They can be exchanged for other currencies, products, and services.

NOTE: WARNING: Bitcoin is a digital currency and its value is determined by the market. The number of bits in a bitcoin can vary depending on its market price. As such, the number of bits in a bitcoin should not be taken as an indication of its value or worth. Investing in bitcoin should only be done with research, caution and proper due diligence.

As of February 2015, over 100,000 merchants and vendors accepted bitcoin as payment.

Bitcoin is pseudonymous, meaning that funds are not tied to real-world entities but rather bitcoin addresses. Owners of bitcoin addresses are not explicitly identified, but all transactions on the blockchain are public.

In addition, anyone can process transactions using the computing power of specialized hardware and earn a reward in bitcoins for this service. This is often called “mining”.

Previous ArticleNext Article