Bitcoin is
an internet currency that
was started in 2009 by a Japanese software developer. In
contrast to normal money,
which is distributed and
controlled by government, there is no central organization behind Bitcoin. You
can send and receive Bitcoin money without giving your name or address and
without paying fees to
a bank.
Bitcoins are
not physical. However, they can be bought at exchanges all across the Internet,
where you can trade them for normal money.
Bitcoins are
created by a process called
mining. They can be produced by anyone around the world. People compete to solve
puzzles using mathematical software. If they succeed they get a certain
number of bitcoins as a reward.
Customers
can save their bitcoins in an internet wallet, a kind of software that manages your virtual money. From there you can
buy products from merchants who
accept bitcoins. You can also sell items and get bitcoins in return. Only your
special ID is transferred across the Internet, never your real
identity. Bitcoin is a way of sending and receiving money anonymously. Not all governments are
happy about this new internet currency. Some see it as a way of transferring
money, for example from drugs or other illegal activities, from one place to another.
The value of bitcoins is determined by their popularity in
the world and how they are trusted.
If many businesses accept the currency and more and more people use it to make
transactions, its value goes up. Recent scandals around Bitcoin exchanges,
however, has made the value of the digital currency go down. Towards the end of 2013 the value
of the world's bitcoins was about $1.5 billion.
Many
economic experts see Bitcoin as the currency of the future. However, it is not
ready for mass use. The
network may suffer from hacking attacks and the value of the money is not very
stable. Bitcoin is also seen as a playground for money speculators.
source : http://www.english-online.at/news-articles/business-economy/bitcoin-digital-money-on-the-internet.htm
Tidak ada komentar:
Posting Komentar