Bitcoin is a virtual currency invented in 2008 by Satoshi Nakamoto. Since their inception, bitcoins have taken the global economy by storm, earning huge popularity in the public sphere due to the relative anonymity it offers and because it is a pervasive globalised currency, which can be used irrespective of the constraints of national currencies.
What is Bitcoin Mining?
Bitcoin mining is, in the simplest terms, the process of extracting bitcoins into your digital wallet. There are approximately 2.5 million bitcoins which still need to be mined, which can be done by solving a set of extremely complex mathematical problems (not your run of the mill algebraic equations, unfortunately).
Hence, mining in this context does not comprise drilling holes into the earth and extracting minerals. On the other hand, with the right kind of equipment and the right mindset to go about earning money, you could be sitting in a room and mining actual digital currency straight into your wallet.
The Future of Bitcoin
It is a non-negotiable fact that cryptocurrency has come to be stigmatised as the dark web stuff, wherein criminals rely on the anonymity it offers to make the easy exchange of drugs or other illegal substances and activities. Bolivia, Bangladesh, Nepal, Algeria, etc., have already illegalised the use of cryptocurrency in their national markets. In addition to being a highly risky mode of investment and exchange, it is also true that Bitcoin is a viable currency only in the hands of a minority population who have both the resources and the intellectual capital of mining the coins and adding value to their wallets.
Whether bitcoin price plays a big role in the future of the global economy, it remains a brilliant invention and perhaps the very inception of a globally famed cryptocurrency.