Bitcoin is digital money that runs on a public network of computers instead of a bank. Nobody owns it, nobody can print more of it, and anyone with an internet connection can use it — including the 240 million people of Pakistan.
The short version
- It's a currency and a network. "Bitcoin" is both the software network and the unit of money (BTC) that moves on it.
- Supply is fixed. There will only ever be 21 million bitcoin. New coins are released on a schedule that halves roughly every four years.
- It's divisible. One bitcoin is 100,000,000 satoshis ("sats"). You never need to buy a whole coin.
- It's peer-to-peer. You can send value to anyone in the world without asking permission, day or night.
- It's public, not anonymous. Every transaction is recorded on an open ledger anyone can read. Addresses aren't names, but they can often be linked to people.
Where it came from
On 31 October 2008 someone using the name Satoshi Nakamoto published a nine-page paper, "Bitcoin: A Peer-to-Peer Electronic Cash System". The network started on 3 January 2009. Satoshi stepped away in 2010 and has never been identified. Since then Bitcoin has been maintained by volunteers and companies around the world, and no single person is in charge.
How does it actually work?
Thousands of computers (nodes) each keep a full copy of the ledger and check every transaction against the same rules. Specialised computers called miners bundle transactions into a block about every ten minutes. To add a block they must spend real electricity solving a puzzle — this is called proof of work, and it's what makes rewriting history prohibitively expensive.
Each block points to the one before it, forming a chain. That's the "blockchain". Read our explainer on how the chain works →
Why people in Pakistan care
- Protection from inflation. The rupee has lost most of its value against the dollar over the last decade. Bitcoin's supply can't be expanded by anyone.
- Getting paid from abroad. Pakistan has one of the world's largest freelancer workforces. Bitcoin lets clients anywhere pay you directly.
- Self-custody. If you hold your own keys, nobody can freeze or seize your savings without your cooperation.