🌐 Exploring BLOCKCHAINS: Episode 1
🚀 Bitcoin: the blockchain that started it all
More than a digital currency, Bitcoin is the first decentralized network in history. Created in 2008 by Satoshi Nakamoto, it brought a revolution: money without banks, without governments, and with a limited supply.
🔗 How does the Bitcoin blockchain work?
The blockchain is like a public ledger, but 100% digital and distributed:
1️⃣ Transactions — When someone sends $BTC , the transaction is broadcast to all nodes in the network.
2️⃣ MemPool — Before going to the blockchain, transactions sit in a “queue” called MemPool.
3️⃣ Mining and Proof-of-Work — Miners compete to solve a complex mathematical problem (SHA-256 hash). The one who finds the valid hash first creates a new block.
4️⃣ Valid block — This block contains hundreds of transactions and a reference to the previous block, forming the “chain of blocks.”
5️⃣ Immutability — Changing any block would require rewriting the entire subsequent chain, something practically impossible without controlling over 50% of the world's computational power.
⚡ The protocol adjusts the mining difficulty every ~2 weeks to maintain an average of 1 block every 10 minutes. This ensures predictability and security.
💎 Programmed scarcity
Bitcoin has a fixed limit: 21 million units.
Every 210,000 blocks, a halving occurs, reducing the miners' rewards.
👉 In April/2024, the issuance dropped to 3.125 BTC/block. The rarer, the more valuable.
⚡ Scalability and future
On the main blockchain, the focus is security. For fast and cheap payments, the Lightning Network emerged, allowing instant microtransactions without congesting the main network.
🏦 Institutional adoption
Bitcoin ETFs approved in 2024 opened the door for institutional investors, strengthening the narrative of $BTC as a global store of value.
👉 And you, do you use Bitcoin more as an investment or as a means of payment (Lightning)? Let us know in the comments!
