This page provides an at-a-glance overview of Bitcoin (BTC), including its concepts, history, structure, mining methods, controversies, and more. Encyclopedic contentis the value.
This page is written in Korean Standard Time (KST).
⚠️ This article is a compilation of Bitcoin-related information organized for learning and research purposes. Unofficial contentis the value.
⚠️ is not intended to be a solicitation of investment, and investment judgment and responsibility are solely yours.
⚠️ The trading and utilization of Bitcoin may be restricted by the regulatory and legal environment of each country. Be sure to check your local laws.
What is Bitcoin?
Bitcoin is a cryptocurrency created in 2009 by Satoshi Nakamoto, a man who went by the pseudonym The world's first decentralized digital currency. While the words "cryptocurrency" or "virtual currency" are now in common usage, Bitcoin is more than just "internet money", it's also a Technological and philosophical experimentsInterest A challenge to the financial systemis the value.
Bitcoin's biggest feature is the "Send and receive money without a bank or centralized authority". In the past, when we made cross-border transfers or payments, we had to go through intermediaries like banks, payment gateways, and credit card companies, and were subject to fees and delays in processing. But with Bitcoin, we can use the Person-to-person (P2P) method is designed to make it easy to send money to anyone in the world with an internet connection.
Blockchain, everyone's ledger
Transaction records are stored in a public, decentralized ledger called a blockchain, which is a Replicated and shared by many computers (nodes) around the worldRather than a centralized ledger controlled exclusively by a single entity, it's a public ledger maintained by multiple entities. This makes it virtually impossible to manipulate records and creates a "transparent system" where anyone can verify transactions at any time.
Bitcoin is digital cash that can be spent on the internet, and a public ledger system that everyone runs together.
How Bitcoin came to be
Bitcoin's emergence was driven by the 2008 Global Financial Crisis. The crisis caused banks, financial institutions, and even central governments to lose trust in one fell swoop, leaving many people wondering, "Why should we trust banks absolutely?"
Satoshi Nakamoto designed Bitcoin with the philosophy of "don't trust, trust the system" in mind.
On January 3, 2009, the **Genesis Block** was created, with the following message inscribed in it
"The Times 03/Jan/2009 Chancellor on brink of second bailout for banks"
This is a headline from The Times, a British newspaper, addressing the issue of "bank bailouts are on the table again". By including this message in Bitcoin's first block, it was a symbolic declaration of criticism of the existing financial system and the beginning of a new alternative.
The basics of Bitcoin's structure: Blockchain, issuance, halving, and difficulty.
Bitcoin is a Code and consensus rules It operates with the exact structure designed below.
- Blockchain All transactions are bundled into a block, which is linked to the previous block. The blocks are connected like a chain.
- Total issue limit : bitcoin is converted to 21 million in totalAfter that, no further issuance is possible, making them scarce and valuable.
- Halving The reward miners receive for creating blocks is Structure halved approximately every four yearsis the value:
- 2009: 50 BTC
- 2012: 25 BTC
- 2016: 12.5 BTC
- 2020: 6.25 BTC
- 2024: 3.125 BTC (as of today)
- Adjusting the difficulty level : new blocks are averaged to be generated every 10 minutes.and the chain is Auto-adjust difficulty about every two weeks (2016 blocks)for each block. If the block generation rate gets too fast, increase the difficulty, if it slows down, decrease it to maintain a constant rate.
Policy - Political timeline (summarized as of 2025)
- 2025-01-23 - White House releases roadmap to foster digital assets and blockchain industry. Documentation
- 2025-03-06 -. Strategic Bitcoin Reserve and US Digital Assets Stockfile Executive order announcement (bulk management and retention frame for forfeited and seized assets). Documentation -. Commentary
- 2025-07-18 -. GENIUS Act Signatures (stablecoin governance). Factsheets
- 2025-07-30 - White House releases follow-up to crypto 'golden age' roadmap (without details of federal digital asset stockpile). ABC coverage
- 2025-08 - Federal statistics (some GDP data) blockchain deployment pilot coverage. Articles
What does Decentralization mean?
At the core of what made Bitcoin truly innovative was its "decentralization." "Rejecting centralization" wasn't just a slogan, it was a philosophy that underpinned the system.
- Bankless transfers - Send money directly between individuals, no longer going through banks.
- Systems outside of government control - Even if a country bans Bitcoin, it can't stop the system completely because there are tons of nodes around the world running with copies.
- Censorship Resistance - While bank accounts can be frozen by court order or government requirement, Bitcoin wallets are protected by the Private keyonly the person with the No one can stop you from owning your assets.
- Consensus and math instead of trust - It's characterized as "a system that doesn't trust people, it trusts code and math."
Bitcoin is "a currency that doesn't trust people, it trusts a system.
What is mining?
Mining Bitcoin is not the same as panning for gold by breaking rocks to find gold. It's a different activity. Computers around the world compete to solve math puzzles at the same timeis the value.
- When individuals could mine - In the early days, it was possible to mine with a personal computer or laptop. Just like Scratch a lottery ticket and only the first prize winner gets the moneyin the past.
- Current Mining Structure: Mining Pools - The difficulty is now so high that it's almost impossible to do it alone, so miners use the Mining poolsto solve the problem together and, if successful, to use the Share rewards based on your percentage of contribution.
"Solve a big problem with a calculator with a group of people, dividing up the pieces according to the amount of computation"
This means that in the real world, "Everyone spins the giant calculator to solve the problem, and we share the labor.".
Miners aren't just in it for the rewards, The critical "security guard" that keeps your network secure You're fulfilling your role.
Satoshi Nakamoto and holdings
The person who created Bitcoin, Satoshi Nakamotois still a mystery to this day - it could be an individual, it could be a team.
Interestingly, the coin Satoshi is believed to have mined himself in his early days is called Approximately 1 millionwhich is equivalent to tens of billions of dollars in today's dollars, but surprisingly, the So far, it has barely moved once.
If these coins were to hit the market all at once, it would be a huge shock, but they've been dormant for so long that they're considered something of a legend.
Bitcoin's bright side and what's to come
- Digital gold (store of value) - The total amount is limited, making it a "scarce asset" like gold.
- Leveraging country units - El Salvador will adopt Bitcoin in 2021 Fiat currencyas the default.
- Technology Extensions - Lightning Network - While the main chain is slow, second-layer technologies like the Lightning Network have enabled micropayments and instant payments.
- Going institutional - the US case - Approval of the first Bitcoin futures ETF in 2021, followed by a series of spot Bitcoin ETFs (Akon, Valkyrie, ProShares, etc.) in 2025.
- Expanding financial inclusion - Providing new financial access in areas lacking banking infrastructure.
The conflict and dark side of mining
Energy use controversies
It's been pointed out that mining uses a lot of electricity, which is a huge environmental burden.
Regional conflicts
Sometimes mining sites use a lot of electricity in a given area, which can lead to neighborhood backlash or regulatory controversy.
Scam (fraud) concerns
Bitcoin itself is transparent, but scam projects, fake exchanges, and hacks using it are constantly popping up.
Price volatility
Prices can go up and down rapidly, posing great risk to investors.
Cautions for Memecoin
Political and celebrity-themed memecoins get a lot of attention in the short term, but they are essentially Extreme volatilityand Information asymmetryespecially when a policymaker, their family, or affiliated companies are mentioned at the same time as a related token or ETF. Conflicts of interest and Market disruptions Controversy is easy to generate. Be sure to distinguish between investment and learning purposes, and verify facts through official documents, disclosures, and trusted sources.
Frequently asked questions (FAQ)
- Q. Who controls Bitcoin?
→ People around the world play by the same rules, not a specific organization. - Q. Can it be hacked?
→ The blockchain itself is nearly impossible to hack. However, if an individual loses their wallet password (private key), it is impossible to recover. - Q. Are there really only a limited number of issues?
→ Yes, they are limited to a maximum of 21 million. This creates scarcity, just like gold. - Q. Is mining still attractive?
→ Currently, ASIC equipment and electricity are a big expense. Rather than individual mining, it is often replaced by participation in mining pools or investing in ETFs.
The latest stories about the US and Trump (updated 2025)
White House - Federal Policy Trends
On January 23, 2025, the White House unveiled a policy roadmap to support the growth of the digital asset and blockchain industry. On March 6, 2025, it released the Strategic Bitcoin Reserveand United States Digital Asset Stockpilewhich provides a framework for the government to collectively manage and hold confiscated and expropriated bitcoin and other digital assets. On July 18, the U.S. Department of Treasury issued an executive order creating the GENIUS Act There was also a signature.
Also in August, a trial of distributing some federal statistics (such as GDP data) on a public blockchain will be reported, and experiments with open data distribution are underway.
Trump and family expand crypto business
In August, the Trump Media & Technology Group (TMTG) partnered with Crypto.com to create the Trump Media CRO Strategya large-scale digital asset treasury company. The announcement of partnerships and wallet infrastructure integration plans centered around the Kronos (CRO) token, along with a spike in CRO price, garnered attention.
There are also reports that new bitcoin-related entities and products (mining, ETFs, treasuries, etc.) with Trump family involvement are in the process of going public or raising funds within the year.
Official Memecoin and ETF push
Trump put his name on $TRUMPand Melania is $MELANIA and its price and market capitalization have fluctuated rapidly since its listing on exchanges. Despite the volatile and controversial nature of Memecoin, market interest remains high.
Asset managers Canary Capitalis $TRUMP Memecoin ETF In pushing for the listing, attempts to bring politically-themed crypto into regulated financial instruments have been spotted.
Ethical and regulatory issues
The president's family's expansion into memecoin and crypto is a Conflicts of interest-.Ethics-.Market Order side of the debate. Civil society organizations and the media have raised concerns about possible conflicts with public officials' asset holdings and policy direction, and some have pointed to the speculative and fraudulent risks of memecoin.
Author's Note ✍️
Someone says, "Bitcoin is speculation, it has no substance!
My response to this is that money is just paper and gold is just shiny ore.
The important thing is that the moment people recognize that it exists, it's born.
One-line summaries
What is Bitcoin? It's not just a cryptocurrency, it's a decentralized system that rejects centralization and believes in systems instead of people. The idea is a complex revolution at the intersection of finance, philosophy, technology, politics, and the environment.
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