What is Bitcoin and cryptocurrencies?

The term "cryptocurrency" - the direct translation of English "cryptocurrency", that is the virtual currency protected by cryptography. First of all, the cryptocurrency is the fast and reliable system of payments and money transfers based on the latest technologies and uncontrollable to any government.

!! Bitcoin, BTC !!!

The word "Bitcoin" is formed in English from "bit" – the minimum information unit and "coin" – a coin. Conforming to the rules of the English-Russian transcription, this term needs to be translated into Russian as "Bitcoin". Such writing is used by the official site of bitcoin.org, Bitcoin Wiki, Wikipedia, the Central Bank of the Russian Federation and other resources. Still widespread Bitcoin option came from the first translation of the interface of a purse on the basis of a direct transliteration.

The most widespread abbreviation from Bitcoin – BTC – is usually applied in exchange trade and articles of a financial directivity. The Cyrillic abbreviation, BTK, in community didn't get accustomed.

What is Bitcoin? It is the first and the most known of a set of cryptocurrencies, a symbol and a leader of the cryptocurrency world, and also the monetary unit of the same name which addresses in system. Further in this article we will tell how the cryptocurrency works, on the example of Bitcoin.
In what the most significant feature of Bitcoin from the point of view of economy? These are digital goods with the limited offer, his algorithm is arranged in such a way that in system there can be at most 21 million units, each of which is also called "bitcoin". The schedule of issue is defined programmatically and in advance known. After the last coins will be generated, their quantity won't change. The economy of Bitcoin is constructed on deflationary model which causes fears in many economists. But they don't find practical justification.
Actually, such rather small amount of coins is quite enough for daily calculations as 1 bitcoin is divided into 100 000 000 parts which are called "satosh", in honor of the creator of system. The concepts "millibitkoyn" (mBTC, one thousand) and "microbitcoin" (uBTC, one million) are sometimes used.

The bitcoin began with the concept - the document published on October 31, 2008 by the mysterious personality working under Satoshi Nakamoto pseudonym. Who is the real developer, one is the person or group – it is still unknown, despite numerous journalistic investigations. Since January 3, 2009 practical implementation of this concept in a program code originates. At 18:45 across Greenwich (22:45 MOSCOW TIME) 1/3/2009 the first block in networks, so-called genesis - block has been generated. This day is considered birthday of Bitcoin and is celebrated by community worldwide.

Cryptocurrencies in life

Originally bitcoins were demanded only among mathematicians, cryptographers, and also the people very strongly keen on computer and network technologies. Then bitcoins served just as the proof that the electronic money which doesn't have the guaranteed providing is possible. More likely, it is possible to call them an electronic analog of gold — as well as it is difficult to extract gold, bitcoin, his quantity is limited, and labor input of production only increases over time. In the fall of 2009 1 BTC it was already possible to buy for 0.8 cents. Since then history of exchange trade in which there were many take-off and falling, loud bankruptcies and successful projects has begun. Transactions for bitcoins at first were rare and incidental. Purchase of two pizzas for 10 000 BTC which has taken place in May, 2010 (at that time an equivalent of $25) was the first and the most known. Since then the market rate rose higher than $1000 and fell back to $150, but that's another story...

At an early stage of development of Bitcoin its popularity was created by the Japanese exchange MtGox and the illegal Silk Road online market. Now Bitcoin doesn't depend on one exchange or a pool, and against illegal activities in cryptocurrencies law enforcement authorities learned to fight as well as against other economic crimes.

Today Bitcoin - the modern digital currency which perfectly is suitable for calculations on the Internet. More and more shops accept Bitcoin as one of payment options. Simplicity and convenience of opening of the score in bitcoins attract in this digital currency more and more people from developing countries. In many states of Asia and Africa the Bitcoin network replaces to people hardly accessible and expensive banking service. In the developed countries POS terminals for payments with bitcoins gained distribution in shops, ATMs for cryptocurrencies, the hardware purses for Bitcoin. There was the real boom of startups which use Bitcoin. It turned out that the technology of a blokcheyn is suitable not only for financial calculations, but also for the distributed data storage about different assets. Already there are several thousands of other cryptocurrencies created on the basis of Bitcoin or from scratch.