The bitcoin network is a peer-to-peer payment network that operates on a cryptographic protocol. Users send and receive bitcoins, the units of currency, by broadcasting digitally signed messages to the network using bitcoin cryptocurrency wallet software. Transactions are recorded into a distributed, replicated public database known as the blockchain, with consensus achieved by a proof-of-work system called mining. Satoshi Nakamoto, the designer of bitcoin claimed that design and coding of bitcoin began in 2007. The project was released in 2009 as open source software. The network requires the minimal structure to share transactions. An ad hoc decentralized network of volunteers is sufficient. Messages are broadcast on a best effort basis, and nodes can leave and rejoin the network at will. Upon reconnection, a node downloads and verifies new blocks from other nodes to complete its local copy of the blockchain. A bitcoin is defined by a sequence of digitally signed transactions that began with the bitcoin's creation, as a block reward. The owner of a bitcoin transfers it by digitally signing it over to the next owner using a bitcoin transaction, much like endorsing a traditional bank check. A payee can examine each previous transaction to verify the chain of ownership. Unlike traditional check endorsements, bitcoin transactions are irreversible, which eliminates the risk of chargeback fraud. Although it is possible to handle bitcoins individually, it would be unwieldy to require a separate transaction for every bitcoin in a transaction. Transactions are therefore allowed to contain multiple inputs and outputs, allowing bitcoins to be split and combined. Common transactions will have either a single input from a larger previous transaction or multiple inputs combining smaller amounts, and one or two outputs: one for the payment, and one returning the change, if any, to the sender. Any difference between the total input and output amounts of a transaction goes to miners as a transaction fee. In 2013, Mark Gimein estimated electricity consumption to be about 40.9 megawatts (982 megawatt-hours a day). In 2014, Hass McCook estimated 80.7 megawatts (80,666 kW). As of 2015, The Economist estimated that even if all miners used modern facilities, the combined electricity consumption would be 166.7 megawatts (1.46 terawatt-hours per year). To lower the costs, bitcoin miners have set up in places like Iceland where geothermal energy is cheap and cooling Arctic air is free. Chinese bitcoin miners are known to use hydroelectric power in Tibet to reduce electricity costs. Various potential attacks on the bitcoin network and its use as a payment system, real or theoretical, have been considered. The bitcoin protocol includes several features that protect it against some of those attacks, such as unauthorized spending, double spending, forging bitcoins, and tampering with the blockchain. Other attacks, such as theft of private keys, require due care by users.
Blockchains are quickly becoming the modern equivalent of what apps were to smartphones when they took off a decade ago. There’s a blockchain for everything - from cloud storage (Siacoin) to identity verification (Civic). But the original point of Bitcoin, the very cryptocurrency was to overturn the traditional banking system. An interestingly named token - Bread, is here to bring us back on track for this original goal. Bread technology intends to reinvent and revolutionize banking as we know it. By building a blockchain synced, Bitcoin-based wallet, the idea here is to decentralise banking and make it accessible to everyone. With a blockchain connected, easy to use Bitcoin wallet, Bread makes it easy for you to transition to a truly decentralised banking service.It also provides portfolio management tools to offer a comprehensive banking experience. Purchases made using its BRD token attract loyalty points and rewards, giving customers another lucrative reason to use the Bread wallet app. Bread was officially launched in 2014 itself and even raised VC funding to the tune of $7 million in August 2017. It then went the ICO route in December 2017, where it made available 88 million BRD tokens. $32 million was raised in the price, with BRD being valued at the rate of 900 for every 1 ETH at the time. As of June 2018, just over 6 months later, its value had fallen to above 1600 for every 1 ETH. A decentralised banking system was Bitcoin’s original vision that is either taking too long to fruition, or we’ve become an impatient audience. Whatever the case, Bread wants to accelerate the transition. A significant decision the Bread team took was to introduce the BRD token - which, with its cheap rates and loyalty/discount offerings, may emerge as the primary incentive for users joining the platform. If this is indeed the case, expect a spike in the value of the BRD cryptocurrency, something investors right now would be eyeing closely. Having said that, its fall in value since the ICO is certainly a cause for concern, and investors are advised to do their research and analyse before taking decisions.