Cryptocurrencies and the Blockchain Revolution

In January 2009, a mysterious software developer, Satoshi Nakamoto, exchanged a specially designed code with another developer. The code was a digital currency that Nakamoto had proposed several months before in a paper titled “Bitcoin: A Peer-to-Peer Electronic Cash System.” This was the first Bitcoin transaction.

Few people took notice when Bitcoin was first exchanged. But the revolutionary digital currency has gained momentum, attracting global attention from coders and finance industry giants alike. Bitcoin promised to shake up banking and provide a source of money free from government regulation and corruption. In its first decade, Bitcoin did just that, and those who invested early made millions with the cryptocurrency. But the power of Bitcoin—and the blockchain technology behind it—goes far beyond finance into the worlds of art, politics, and even crime.

Cryptocurrencies are more than just digital money; they provide a vision for a new kind of social transaction. As some of the most talked-about technological innovations, cryptocurrencies are prompting people to rethink their relationships with the government and financial institutions. Cryptocurrencies and the Blockchain Revolution: Bitcoin and Beyond delves into a world full of coders, investors, hackers, and financial experts to explain what cryptocurrencies have to offer, their limitations and potential pitfalls, and how they may affect governments and financial institutions in the future.