# Bitcoin

> The first cryptocurrency. A digital money you can send anywhere in the world without a bank, secured by a network of computers.

Canonical URL: https://fudfomo.co/glossary/bitcoin
Source: What The Block! Dictionary v1.0 (last updated 2026-04-25), browsable at https://wtb.fudfomo.co.

## Definition

Bitcoin is the first and largest cryptocurrency. Launched in January 2009 by an unknown creator using the name Satoshi Nakamoto, it lets people send value to anyone in the world without going through a bank or payment processor.

Bitcoin runs on a public ledger called a blockchain, kept in sync by tens of thousands of computers around the world. There will only ever be 21 million bitcoin, which is why people often compare it to digital gold.

## Related terms

- [Blockchain](https://fudfomo.co/glossary/blockchain): A shared digital record of transactions that no single person or company controls. Everyone can read it, and changes are extremely hard to fake.
- [Mining](https://fudfomo.co/glossary/mining): Using computers to add new transactions to a blockchain and earn newly created coins as a reward.
- [Halving](https://fudfomo.co/glossary/halving): An event where the reward for mining new Bitcoin blocks is cut in half. Happens roughly every four years.
- [Proof of Work](https://fudfomo.co/glossary/proof-of-work): A way to secure a blockchain by making computers do a lot of calculation. Used by Bitcoin.

## See the full catalogue

What The Block! covers more than 2,000 plain-English crypto terms, delivered as embeddable hover-state tooltips for crypto exchanges. https://wtb.fudfomo.co