What is Bitcoin?
Bit is the unit of information in the digital world, so Bitcoin is naturally the currency of the digital world. Bitcoin is a digital currency with significant value in the real world. Therefore, Bitcoin can be used to exchange dollars, yen or any other currency in the world. Bitcoin can usually be abbreviated as "BTC".
Anyone can participate in Bitcoin activities. You can use Bitcoin to do everything you can with traditional currency! From small retail payments to large remittance funds between large institutions, Bitcoin can be used for anything. Settlement is done electronically, so it is easy to send funds on the Internet. Whether the recipient is adjacent to you or on the other side of the world, the funds can be settled in a very short time.
Bitcoin allows individuals to pay directly to others. Like cash, it does not need to go through third-party institutions such as banks, clearing centers, securities dealers, and electronic payment platforms, thus avoiding high fees, cumbersome processes, and regulatory issues. Any user can use any digital device that can be connected to the Internet.
It can be sent to any corner of the world through the decentralized blockchain network without relying on the bank. Therefore, when using it for cross-border transfer, there is no need to worry about the high transfer fees and long waiting time. For those who make cross-border transfers, its benefits are obvious, because it is not only fast in transfer time, but also as simple and convenient as we usually use Alipay to transfer money.
However, because the Bitcoin blockchain can only accept a limited amount of transactions in a certain period of time, it can accept up to 2500 transactions every 10 minutes, and the transaction fees will fluctuate with the amount of Bitcoin transactions. However, this problem is being solved by technologies such as Lightning Network to expand the transaction volume of Bitcoin in a certain period of time.
What is the difference between Bitcoin and Japanese yen or US dollar?
If Bitcoin is the same as Japanese yen and US dollar, it is unnecessary. So, what's special about Bitcoin?
The biggest difference is that Bitcoin has no central bank. No institution, government or other third party regulates the issuance and circulation of Bitcoin. In other words, although Bitcoin is a digital currency, it is also another currency in the world. One difference between digital currency (such as Bitcoin) and physical currency (such as Japanese yen or US dollar) is that Bitcoin has no entity. It is generated by a series of complex codes generated by computers.
Unlike yen or dollars, bitcoin must be settled electronically. Bitcoin is not paper currency or coin, it has no physical form. Bitcoin does not have a centralized issuer, but is generated by the calculation of network nodes. Everyone may participate in the production of Bitcoin, and it can circulate all over the world. It can be bought and sold on any computer connected to the Internet. No matter where you are, anyone can dig, buy, sell or collect Bitcoin, and Chinese and foreign people cannot identify user identity information in the transaction process.
Although Bitcoin has the basic characteristics of government currency, it is not managed by any country or company. This groundbreaking concept makes Bitcoin unique.
