Bitcoin has been the center of much controversy over the past few years. Bitcoin is a popular virtual currency that can be used to purchase things anonymously on the internet, transfer money between people without fees or restrictions, and also store values securely without needing to trust any third party. Bitcoin exists in an unregulated space which means it doesn’t have to answer to anyone other than the users themselves. Bitcoin’s anonymous nature makes it rather hard for governments to control how it’s being traded, bought, or sold since Bitcoin is entirely digital there are no tangible products being exchanged other than numbers across screens. Bitcoin Up is one of the most authentic platforms that can help you in bitcoin investment. This ambiguity brings us to our first point about Bitcoin’s price fluctuations:
Bitcoin Price Determinations
Bitcoin prices are determined by market forces dictated by supply and demand. There is only 21 million Bitcoin that can be mined in total, Bitcoin’s price will continue to fluctuate depending on how many people are buying it at a given time. Bitcoin is becoming more and more mainstream with each day passing by, but Bitcoin was created to give users the ability to be their own bank without being charged fees or needing to trust any third party with their money. Bitcoin has the potential of making exchanging currency much easier for everyone who uses it since Bitcoin exists digitally on computers rather than on physical notes which are susceptible to forgery.
Bitcoin Blockchain
Bitcoin transactions are recorded in an extremely public ledger known as Blockchain which is shared between all Bitcoin users across the world. Each transaction made using Bitcoin is added into the decentralised network that all Bitcoin users have access to, this means that there is no Bitcoin company that can charge fees for Bitcoin transactions since Bitcoin is decentralised and free to use by anyone at any time. One of Bitcoin’s main features is its lack of transaction fees, however, if Bitcoin becomes more mainstream then transaction costs may become one of Bitcoin’s biggest problems in the future.
Since Bitcoin has a very high inflation rate after all 21 million Bitcoins have been mined, the supply will only go up as more-and-more people begin to use it which will drive down the price for 1 Bitcoin until equilibrium is reached again. If Bitcoin becomes widely used this could potentially cause prices to fluctuate greatly depending on how many users are buying/selling at any given moment. The value can go up or down significantly depending on what events are occurring around Bitcoin.
Bitcoin has been less than stable in recent months with Bitcoin prices suddenly shooting up to $1000+ before suddenly dropping back down to the $400 range within a few weeks of its peak value. Bitcoin price fluctuations have been very volatile lately which can be a factor for Bitcoin not being used as a mainstream currency yet since Bitcoin users do not know if Bitcoin will continue to rise in value over time or collapse entirely, Bitcoin prices also tend to differ depending on where you’re buying Bitcoin. Bitcoin prices on trading websites such as Bitstamp and BTC-e are generally lower compared to Bitcoin exchanges such as Coinbase and Circle since there is more risk involved with trading Bitcoin online rather than buying Bitcoin directly from an exchange website.
Conclusion
Bitcoin was built to be decentralised and avoid third-party fees but Bitcoin isn’t regulated by authorities which makes it hard for Bitcoin users to know if Bitcoin is trustworthy or not since Bitcoin doesn’t have any regulations or authority to enforce Bitcoin users. Bitcoin has no one to answer to other than the users themselves, which could be a potential problem for Bitcoin’s mainstream adoption.
Bitcoin was created as an alternative currency that can be used anonymously online, but Bitcoin’s volatility could make it difficult for Bitcoin prices to become stable enough for global use without price restrictions.
Bitcoin is a cryptocurrency, a digital asset designed to work as a medium of exchange that uses cryptography to control its creation and management, rather than relying on central authorities. Bitcoin was invented by an unknown person or group of people under the name Satoshi Nakamoto and released as open-source software in 2009.
A bitcoin can be divided up to 8 decimal places (0.00000001 BTC) and potentially even smaller units if that is ever required in the future as the average transaction size decreases. The smallest divisible amount is one hundred millionth of a Bitcoin (0.00000001 BTC) and is called a ‘Satoshi’ after Bitcoin’s creator.
