$BTC Bitcoin is the first decentralized digital currency, without a central bank, that can be sent from one person to another via the Bitcoin network in a peer-to-peer manner without the need for a third party (intermediary such as banks).[4] Network transfers are verified using cryptography and are recorded in A distributed ledger called a blockchain, Bitcoin is created as a reward for a process known as mining.[5] It can be exchanged for other currencies, products, and services.[6] Research produced by the University of Cambridge estimates that in 2017, between 2.9 and 5.8 million users used a cryptocurrency wallet, most of whom used Bitcoin.

Bitcoin is criticized because it can be used to conduct illegal transactions, because of the high amount of electricity used for mining to produce a new amount of Bitcoin, for the volatility of the exchange rate, and for hacks of Bitcoin trading exchanges. Some economists described it as a “speculative bubble.”[7][8]

The Bitcoin network has been operating since 2009 and has not stopped since then. Because of the consensus system in the currency, no one has been able to hack the Bitcoin blockchain, and most of the hacks that occur are due to human errors in wallet management and not due to design flaws.