Bitcoin

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BLU CORE INVEST

What Is Bitcoin?

Bitcoin (BTC) is a digital currency, or cryptocurrency, which is used by millions of people around the world and this is my Bitcoin guide for you. It’s built on cryptography, and its main feature is its decentralization. For the first time, you can store value and transfer value without any 3rd party acting as an intermediary. 3rd parties like the central bank, financial institutions, etc. You only rely on technology and math. And you have complete autonomy over your money. This comes with many benefits. To name a few:

  • You aren’t reliant on banks anymore to store/transfer value. 
  • You can do anything you want with your money, nobody will have a say about it. 
  • You can send value anywhere with almost no fee, instantly. 
  • Your government won’t print it at any time without notice, deflating its value. 

There are drawbacks as well:

  • Nobody’s here to protect you if you send BTC to the wrong person. 
  • Bitcoin’s value is mostly based on supply and demand, which makes it more volatile than conventional fiat money. 

What Does a Bitcoin Look Like, Anyway?

No question is too silly for this Bitcoin beginners guide. Some people, after asking “what is Bitcoin?” then ask the question “is it an actual, physical coin?” The question is no laughing matter. A man in New York conned people out of $1.1 million dollars. He took Chuck E. Cheese tokens (physical coins from a children’s arcade), wrote the letter B on them, and sold them to people on the streets. The answer is: No, Bitcoins are not physical. Bitcoin lives completely online. That said, you can store your Bitcoins and other cryptocurrencies offline (where it’s safer). The safest way to do that is by purchasing a hardware wallet. These wallets hold Bitcoin and many other cryptocurrencies. Once you learn how to use them properly and store them safely, they are as close to a physical Bitcoin as you’ll ever get.

A) Bitcoin uses blockchain technology

Bitcoin is built on blockchain technology, and would be nothing without it. In short, blockchain is digital proof. Blockchain technology provides digital proof that something happened at a certain time, without any intermediary involved. For example, when Alice pays Bob a total of 0.00212 Bitcoin, the blockchain records that transaction and when it happened. That data is stamped into the blockchain forever and can act as proof of the transaction.

B) Bitcoin is transparent

There’s a famous saying in the Bitcoin community that is “don’t trust, verify.” When you’re using Bitcoin, you don’t need to trust any person, bank, or government. That’s because Bitcoin is fully transparent. You, me, anyone can look at the Bitcoin blockchain and verify that a transaction happened. We can verify what is happening and know it is free from manipulation.