Bitcoin was conceptualised in the wake of the 2008 financial crisis in the form of a whitepaper by a pseudonymous individual (or group) known as ‘Satoshi Nakamoto’.
Nakamoto’s identity has never been confirmed although speculators and enthusiasts have purported several suspects over the years.
Although Satoshi Nakamoto was the first person to successfully create a viable cryptocurrency, he wasn’t the first to try.
Others had attempted to create online currencies, but none had succeeded. One example is ‘bit gold’, a precursor to Bitcoin which was formulated in 1998 by Nick Szabo. There have been many notable developments in Bitcoin over time.
Below is a short timeline which outlines the main highlights.
2009:
Bitcoin is made public and the process of ‘mining’ begins.
2010:
The first ever Bitcoin trade occurs over a Bitcoin forum. Up until this point, Bitcoins had only been mined.
2011:
Bitcoin reaches parity with the dollar (US) in February and then quickly exceeds it. By June, 1 Bitcoin is worth $31. The first market competitors to Bitcoin – known collectively as ‘altcoins’ – begin to appear.
2013:
The price of one Bitcoin has reached $1000. At this point, it begins to decline and plummets to approximately $300. The People’s Bank of China bans financial institutions in China from handling Bitcoin transactions.
2014:
The US government seizes 29,000 Bitcoins from Silk Road, an online drug marketplace, and subsequently auctions them off. Microsoft begins to accept payments in Bitcoin.
2015 – 2016:
The value of one Bitcoin climbs back up to $770 by June 2016. Ethereum, one of Bitcoin’s most successful successors and the second-largest cryptocurrency by market capitalisation, is released.
2017:
The price of Bitcoin spikes as demand soars and climbs from less than $1000 to almost $20,000 by the end of the year.
2018:
Prices tanked after January, falling by over 50% by April. It’s been speculated that this fall was due to the launch of a Bitcoin futures market.
2019:
The dawn of 2019 found Bitcoin trading below the $4000 mark after a difficult year for the global crypto market.
2020:
Bitcoin’s price reached just under $29,000 in December 2020, increasing 416% from the start of that year.
2021:
By mid-April, Bitcoin prices reached new all-time highs of over $60,000.
2022:
On 18 June, Bitcoin dropped below $18,000, to trade at levels beneath its 2017 highs.
2023:
By December 13, 2023 Bitcoin price reached $41,450.