Bitcoin
The first cryptocurrency, with supply capped at 21 million coins.
21 million
Maximum supply
every 10 minutes on average
Block
April 2024
Latest halving
Money without a central bank
Launched in January 2009 by an anonymous author, Satoshi Nakamoto, bitcoin is a digital currency whose transactions are recorded on a public blockchain, validated by “miners” who supply computing power. No authority can create more: supply is capped at 21 million coins.
The halving
About every four years (every 210,000 blocks), the miners’ reward is halved. It went from 50 bitcoins per block in 2009 to 3.125 since April 2024. This fixed schedule makes new bitcoin ever scarcer.
Common mistakes
- Losing your private keys: the bitcoins are then lost forever.
- Underestimating volatility, often above 50% a year.
Notitia newsroom · education, not investment advice.