History of Bitcoin in Timeline

Bitcoin is a decentralized cryptocurrency created in 2008 by the pseudonymous Satoshi Nakamoto. Launched in 2009, it operates on an open-source platform. Bitcoin gained attention when El Salvador adopted it as legal tender (2021-2025). Its pseudonymous nature has led to regulatory scrutiny and bans in some countries due to its use in illicit activities.

1992: Solutions to computational puzzles proposed

In 1992, the idea that solutions to computational puzzles could have some value was first proposed by cryptographers Cynthia Dwork and Moni Naor.

1997: Hashcash developed for spam control

In 1997, Adam Back developed Hashcash, a proof-of-work scheme for spam control, independently rediscovering the concept of computational puzzles having value.

1998: First proposals for distributed cryptocurrencies

In 1998, the first proposals for distributed digital scarcity-based cryptocurrencies came from cypherpunks Wei Dai (b-money) and Nick Szabo (bit gold).

2004: First currency based on reusable proof of work developed

In 2004, Hal Finney developed the first currency based on reusable proof of work.

August 2008: bitcoin.org domain name registered

On August 18, 2008, the domain name bitcoin.org was registered.

October 2008: Bitcoin white paper posted

On October 31, 2008, a link to a white paper authored by Satoshi Nakamoto titled Bitcoin: A Peer-to-Peer Electronic Cash System was posted to a cryptography mailing list.

2008: Bitcoin invented

In 2008, Bitcoin was invented based on a free-market ideology. An unknown entity published a white paper under the pseudonym of Satoshi Nakamoto.

January 2009: Bitcoin network created

On January 3, 2009, the Bitcoin network was created when Satoshi Nakamoto mined the genesis block. The block contained the text "The Times 03/Jan/2009 Chancellor on brink of second bailout for banks".

2009: First wallet program released

In 2009, the first wallet program, simply named Bitcoin, and sometimes referred to as the Satoshi client, was released by Nakamoto as open-source software.

2009: Bitcoin currency use begins

In 2009, the use of Bitcoin as a currency began with the release of its open-source implementation.

2009: Buying real-world goods with any virtual currency illegal in China

Since 2009, buying real-world goods with any virtual currency had been illegal in China.

May 22, 2010: First commercial transaction using Bitcoin

On May 22, 2010, the first known commercial transaction using Bitcoin occurred when Laszlo Hanyecz bought two Papa John's pizzas for ₿10,000, now celebrated as "Bitcoin Pizza Day".

2010: Nakamoto disappears and hands over network alert key

In 2010, Satoshi Nakamoto disappeared and handed the network alert key and control of the code repository over to Gavin Andresen.

February 2011: Silk Road exclusively accepts bitcoins as payment

In February 2011, the dark web Silk Road exclusively accepted bitcoins as payment, transacting ₿9.9 million, worth about $214 million during its 30 months of existence.

September 2012: Bitcoin Foundation founded

In September 2012, the Bitcoin Foundation was founded to promote bitcoin.

2012: Mt. Gox froze accounts containing stolen bitcoins

In 2012, Mt. Gox froze accounts containing bitcoins identified as stolen.

March 2013: FinCEN establishes regulatory guidelines for Bitcoin

In March 2013, the US Financial Crimes Enforcement Network (FinCEN) established regulatory guidelines for "decentralized virtual currencies" such as bitcoin, classifying American bitcoin miners who sell their generated bitcoins as money services businesses.

May 2013: US authorities seized Mt. Gox

In May 2013, US authorities seized the unregistered exchange Mt. Gox.

June 2013: US Drug Enforcement Administration seized Bitcoins

In June 2013, the US Drug Enforcement Administration seized ₿11.02 from an individual attempting to use them to purchase illicit drugs. This marked the first time a government agency had seized bitcoins.

October 2013: FBI seized Bitcoins from Silk Road

In October 2013, the FBI seized about ₿30,000 from Silk Road, following the arrest of its founder Ross Ulbricht.

December 2013: People's Bank of China prohibits Chinese financial institutions from using bitcoin

In December 2013, the People's Bank of China prohibited Chinese financial institutions from using bitcoin. After the announcement, the value of bitcoin dropped, and Baidu no longer accepted bitcoins for certain services.

December 2013: Creation of 'Hodl' Term in December 2013

The term hodl was created in December 2013 for holding bitcoin rather than selling it during periods of volatility.

2013: User loses ₿7,500 by discarding a hard drive

In 2013, a user lost ₿7,500, valued at US$7.5 million, by accidentally discarding a hard drive with the private key.

2014: Bitcoin functions best as a medium of exchange

According to The Economist in 2014, bitcoin functions best as a medium of exchange. Also in 2014, economist Robert J. Shiller wrote that bitcoin has potential as a unit of account for measuring the relative value of goods.

2014: Bitcoin as Ponzi Scheme in 2014

In 2014, economist Nouriel Roubini described bitcoin as a Ponzi scheme. Legal scholar Eric Posner disagrees. A 2014 World Bank report also concluded that bitcoin was not a deliberate Ponzi scheme.

2014: Ghash.io reached 51% mining power

In 2014, mining pool Ghash.io reached 51% mining power, causing safety concerns, but later voluntarily capped its power at 39.99% for the benefit of the whole network.

2014: Regulated Bitcoin Funds since 2014

Since 2014, regulated bitcoin funds also allow exposure to the asset or to futures as an investment.

2015: Limited Bitcoin Use in International Remittances in 2015

As of 2015, there was little sign of Bitcoin use in international remittances despite high fees charged by banks and Western Union.

2015: Bitcoins have qualities useful in a currency

In 2015, The Economist noted that bitcoins had three qualities useful in a currency: they are "hard to earn, limited in supply and easy to verify". Per some researchers, as of 2015, bitcoin functions more as a payment system than as a currency.

August 2017: SegWit software upgrade activated

In August 2017, the SegWit software upgrade was activated to support the Lightning Network and improve scalability. SegWit opponents forked to create Bitcoin Cash.

September 2017: Bitcoin trading in Chinese renminbi falls

In September 2017, the percentage of bitcoin trading in the Chinese renminbi fell from over 90% to less than 1% by June 2018.

December 2017: First futures on Bitcoin introduced

In December 2017, the first futures on Bitcoin was introduced by the Chicago Mercantile Exchange (CME).

December 2017: Bitcoins had been stolen from cryptocurrency exchanges

As of December 2017, approximately ₿980,000 had been stolen from cryptocurrency exchanges.

2017: Bitcoin unlikely to replace monies in well-functioning monetary systems

In 2017, François Velde, senior economist at the Chicago Fed, described bitcoin as "unlikely by itself to replace monies in well-functioning monetary systems."

2017: Research on Tether and Bitcoin Price Increase in 2017

Research published in The Journal of Finance suggested that trading associated with increases in the amount of the Tether cryptocurrency and associated trading at the Bitfinex exchange accounted for about half of the price increase in bitcoin in late 2017.

February 2018: Bitcoin price crashes after China ban

In February 2018, the price crashed after China imposed a complete ban on bitcoin trading.

June 2018: Bitcoin trading in Chinese renminbi drops

By June 2018, the percentage of bitcoin trading in the Chinese renminbi dropped to less than 1% from over 90% in September 2017. Also during 2018, bitcoin prices were negatively affected by several hacks or thefts from cryptocurrency exchanges.

2018: Research on Bitcoin Volatility in 2018

According to research published in the International Review of Financial Analysis in 2018, bitcoin as an asset is highly volatile and does not behave like any other conventional asset.

2018: Bitcoin Transactions on Exchanges in 2018

As of 2018, the overwhelming majority of Bitcoin transactions took place on cryptocurrency exchanges.

2018: Cryptocurrencies met none of the criteria

In 2018, The Economist stated that cryptocurrencies met none of the three criteria useful in a currency.

2018: Research on Mt. Gox Bitcoin Theft Published in 2018

In 2018, research published in the Journal of Monetary Economics concluded that price manipulation occurred during the Mt. Gox bitcoin theft and that the market remained vulnerable to manipulation.

November 2020: PayPal adds support for bitcoin in the US

In November 2020, PayPal added support for bitcoin in the US.

2020: Comparison of Bitcoin Volatility post 2020 Stock Market Crash

According to one 2022 analysis published in The Journal of Alternative Investments, bitcoin was less volatile than oil, silver, US Treasuries, and 190 stocks in the S&P 500 during and after the 2020 stock market crash.

2020: Iran Uses Bitcoin to Circumvent Sanctions since 2020

Since 2020, Iran has required local bitcoin miners to sell bitcoin to the Central Bank of Iran, allowing the central bank to use it for imports to circumvent sanctions.

February 2021: Bitcoin's market capitalization reaches $1 trillion

In February 2021, Bitcoin's market capitalization reached $1 trillion for the first time.

September 2021: Bitcoin becomes legal tender in El Salvador

In September 2021, Bitcoin became legal tender currency in El Salvador, alongside the US dollar.

September 2021: Bitcoin Law in El Salvador

In September 2021, El Salvador's Bitcoin Law made bitcoin a legal tender currency in El Salvador, alongside the US dollar.

October 2021: First Bitcoin futures ETF approved by SEC

In October 2021, the first bitcoin futures exchange-traded fund (ETF), called BITO, from ProShares was approved by the SEC and listed on the CME.

November 2021: Taproot soft-fork upgrade activated

In November 2021, the Taproot soft-fork upgrade was activated, adding support for Schnorr signatures, improved functionality of smart contracts and Lightning Network.

November 2021: Countries with Bitcoin Bans

As of November 2021, nine countries (Algeria, Bangladesh, China, Egypt, Iraq, Morocco, Nepal, Qatar, and Tunisia) had an absolute ban on Bitcoin, while another 42 countries had an implicit ban.

2021: Concentration of Bitcoin Wealth in 2021

As of 2021, Bitcoin wealth is highly concentrated, with 0.01% holding 27% of in-circulation currency.

2021: El Salvador adopts Bitcoin as legal tender

From 2021, El Salvador adopted Bitcoin as legal tender currency. Also as of 2021, Bitcoin use by criminals attracted the attention of regulators, leading to its ban by several countries.

April 2022: Central African Republic Adopts Bitcoin as Legal Tender in April 2022

In April 2022, the Central African Republic (CAR) adopted bitcoin as legal tender alongside the CFA franc, but repealed the reform one year later.

June 2022: Bitcoin price fell following collapses

In June 2022, the bitcoin price fell following the collapses of TerraUSD, a stablecoin, and the Celsius Network, a cryptocurrency loan company.

2022: Bitcoin volatility analysis in 2022

2022: Low Bitcoin usage in El Salvador in 2022

In 2022, the International Monetary Fund urged El Salvador to reverse its decision to make Bitcoin legal tender. As of 2022, the use of Bitcoin in El Salvador remained low with 80% of businesses refusing to accept it.

June 2023: Bitcoin has 81.7 million users

As of June 2023, River Financial estimated that bitcoin had 81.7 million users, about 1% of the global population.

September 2023: El Salvador's Bitcoin Reserves in September 2023

As of September 2023, El Salvador had $76.5 million worth of Bitcoin in its international reserves.

2023: US Government Bitcoin Holdings in 2023

As of 2023, the US government owned more than $5 billion worth of seized bitcoin.

January 2024: First 11 US spot bitcoin ETFs began trading

In January 2024, the first 11 US spot bitcoin ETFs began trading, offering direct exposure to bitcoin for the first time on American stock exchanges.

December 2024: Bitcoin price reaches $100,000 for the first time

In December 2024, bitcoin price reached $100,000 for the first time, as US president-elect Donald Trump promised to make the US the "crypto capital of the planet" and to stockpile bitcoin.

2024: Pew Research Center Survey on Cryptocurrency in 2024

A 2024 survey from the Pew Research Center found that 17% of American adults have invested in, traded, or used a cryptocurrency.

2024: Economists on Bitcoin as an Economic Bubble in 2024

In 2024, Jean Tirole described bitcoin as a "pure bubble" as its intrinsic value is zero. The same year, Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell described bitcoin as a digital competitor to gold but not to the dollar as he argued it is a highly volatile speculative asset not used as a form of payment.

January 2025: El Salvador no longer regards bitcoin as a legal tender currency

In January 2025, El Salvador amended its laws to no longer regard bitcoin as a legal tender currency, and to no longer accept it as payment for taxes.

January 2025: El Salvador Revokes Bitcoin's Legal Tender Status in January 2025

In January 2025, El Salvador's government revoked bitcoin's status as legal tender currency in order to comply with conditions set by the IMF for a loan. El Salvador still describes bitcoin as "legal tender", but its acceptance is no longer obligitory and the El Salvador government no longer accepts bitcoin for payment of taxes or fees.

March 2025: President Trump signed an executive order to establish a strategic bitcoin reserve

In March 2025, President Trump signed an executive order to establish a strategic bitcoin reserve.

2025: Bitcoin mining electricity consumption estimated

As of 2025, a non-peer-reviewed study by the Cambridge Centre for Alternative Finance (CCAF) estimated that bitcoin mining represented 0.5% of global electricity consumption and 0.08% of world greenhouse gas emissions, comparable to Slovakia's emissions.

2025: El Salvador legal tender adoption ends

In 2025, El Salvador stopped using bitcoin as legal tender.

2025: Bitcoin Use in 2025

In 2025, Harvard Professor Kenneth Rogoff stated that Bitcoin is rarely used in regular transactions but is popular in the informal economy and for criminal activities. Prices are not usually quoted in Bitcoin, and trades involve conversions into fiat currencies due to high costs, inability to process chargebacks, high price volatility, long transaction times, and transaction fees.

2025: Kenneth Rogoff Claims Bitcoin Has Value in 2025

In 2025, Kenneth Rogoff claimed that Krugman was wrong and that Bitcoin had value as it is competing with the dollar to become the means of exchange of the underground economy which represents 20% of the world's GDP.

2025: Bitcoin Daily Transaction Volume in 2025

The daily transaction volume of bitcoin across all exchanges typically reaches $50 billion as of 2025.

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