Within a decade, Bitcoin has changed currencies. In another decade, it might have changed the world.
A decade ago, an anonymous character with the name Satoshi Nakamoto sent a paper to a mailing list proposing a form of digital currency. What is this digital currency? Bitcoin.
This anonymous character still maintains this name and their true identity remains unknown. However, one thing is for sure, the concept of cryptocurrency is now well known and it is here to stay.
Since its inception, the price of Bitcoin has been on a rollercoaster ride. At the start of 2017, a single Bitcoin was worth under $1,000. By December 2017 it was worth $20,000 and it’s currently worth around $6,500.
For anyone that has invested in Bitcoin, it has certainly been a journey with some making millions in the height of 2017 and others making huge losses as the price has since fallen.
Who is currently using Bitcoin?
In the last quarter of 2017, about 10,000 businesses started to accept Bitcoin payments as a form of currency. More and more businesses are starting to accept Bitcoin, which is putting pressure on those that don’t.
It’s a bit like when businesses started to have card terminals. Those that were early adopters succeeded at the cost of those that remained reliant on cash.
One interesting country in the Bitcoin space is Australia. It has been a quick adaptor and looks set to benefit from its openness to currency competition.
The growth of cryptocurrency has been lightning quick and the Australia Stock Exchange looks set to benefit significantly as it opened its arms to cryptocurrencies as early as 2014.
As you might expect, Bitcoin leaders are those that already have an existing financial market that many people are part of. The United States has 6 out of the top 10 cities which are deemed to be “friendly to Bitcoin”.
Both Los Angeles and New York are in the top 3 cities which have adopted Bitcoin in a significant way. In Los Angeles, there were 878 businesses accepting Bitcoin, 145 Bitcoin ATMs and 45 blockchain meetups. New York, in comparison, had 561 businesses accepting Bitcoin.
The Bitcoin revolution is taking over financial centers across the world as London has also seen major growth recently with 118 businesses accepting Bitcoin at the end of 2017.
Are there any unexpected trends in the Bitcoin market?
Perhaps surprisingly, Asian countries such as China and Japan are not seen as particularly friendly towards Bitcoin. They had very few businesses accepting Bitcoin, very few ATMs and hardly any meetups to discuss the concept.
In the case of China it may be a case of the Chinese President wanting to maintain currency controls as they have done in the past, however, Japan is surprising. Where the Asian countries do dominate however is the logistical side of Bitcoin. Both China and Japan dominate the Bitcoin mining industry. This is due to the size of the labor force, cheap electronics, and cheap electricity. Mining Bitcoin is incredibly energy intensive, so where electricity is cheaper, you will see miners.
Are cryptocurrencies here to stay?
Absolutely. At a time when people are becoming warier of government regulation, more people are moving towards cryptocurrencies.
Will Bitcoin be the first of many, or will it just be Bitcoin? I’m not entirely sure. But one thing is for certain, financial markets are sitting up and taking notes because cryptocurrencies are here to stay.