History

1983.
In 1983, the American cryptographer David Chaum conceived an anonymous cryptographic electronic
money called ecash. Later, in 1995, he implemented it through Digicash, an early form of cryptographic
electronic payments which required user software in order to withdraw notes from a bank and designate
specific encrypted keys before it can be sent to a recipient. This allowed the digital currency to be untraceable
by the issuing bank, the government, or any third party.

1996.
In 1996, the NSA published a paper entitled How to Make a Mint: the Cryptography of Anonymous Electronic
Cash, describing a Cryptocurrency system first publishing it in a MIT mailing list and later in 1997, in The
American Law Review (Vol. 46, Issue 4)
.

1998.
In 1998, Wei Dai published a description of "b-money", characterized as an anonymous, distributed electronic
cash system. Shortly thereafter, Nick Szabo described bit gold. Like bitcoin and other cryptocurrencies that
would follow it, bit gold (not to be confused with the later gold-based exchange, BitGold) was described as an
electronic currency system which required users to complete a proof of work function with solutions being
cryptographically put together and published. A currency system based on a reusable proof of work was later
created by Hal Finney who followed the work of Dai and Szabo

2008.
The first two milestones for cryptocurrency take place. On 18 August, the domain name
bitcoin.org is registered. Then, on 31 October, the mysterious and so-called “Satoshi
Nakamoto”, who designed bitcoin, publishes a paper that sets the ball rolling: Bitcoin: A
peer-to-peer Electronic Cash System.

2009.
The first bitcoin transaction occurs when Nakamoto sends Hal Finney, a computer
programmer, 10 bitcoin (BTC) on 12 January.

2010.
On 15 August, bitcoin is hacked, exposing a major vulnerability in the system. A highly
unusual transaction involving 184 billion BTC is noted by bitcoin developer Jeff Garzik, who
acknowledges it by saying: “We’ve had a problem here”. Later that year, the inaugural
bitcoin sale takes place, enabling a monetary value to be attached to cryptocurrency for the
first time. A bitcoin user swaps 10,000 coins for two pizzas. Given that 10,000 bitcoin would
be worth more than £55m today, these would be the most expensive pizzas in history.

2011.
Rival cryptocurrencies begin to emerge, with Litecoin, Namecoin and Swiftcoin all
making their debut. Meanwhile, bitcoin is criticised after claims emerge it is being used
on the so-called “dark web”, particularly on sites such as Silk Road. Proving that no
publicity is bad publicity, the price of bitcoin skyrockets before crashing back down
again.

2012.
Cryptocurrencies begin to enter the popular consciousness, including a fictionalised trial in
the third season of US drama The Good Wife, entitled Bitcoin for Dummies.

2013.
Bitcoin holders fail to agree on a new rule for transactions, resulting in a bitcoin “fork” and
the blockchain literally splits in two. For six hours there are two networks operating at the
same time, with two different versions of transaction history, leading to an inevitable drop
in value. Meanwhile, various countries are attempting to work out the best ways to deal with
cryptocurrencies. Thailand bans bitcoin, declaring that trading in the cryptocurrency is
illegal. Germany’s ministry of finance would not accept it as an official currency but rather
as a “unit of account”, paving the way for a future framework to tax bitcoin-based
transactions. The People’s Bank of China prohibits financial institutions from using bitcoins
at all, prompting another drop in value. In Vancouver, Canada, the first bitcoin ATM is
launched.

2014.

Cryptocurrency trading exchange Mt Gox, which is based in Japan, goes offline and files for
bankruptcy protection, leaving investors out of pocket. As an illustration of bitcoin’s
growing popularity, Microsoft allows users to buy games with the currency.

2015.

New cryptocurrencies emerge, including ethereum and coinbase (which raised $75m in a
funding round, the largest amount for a bitcoin company). Bitstamp, a European based
bitcoin exchange, is the victim of a security breach after being hacked, but resumes trading a
few days later, assuring customers that they have not lost their funds.

2016.

Cryptocurrencies continue to become more mainstream. The number of bitcoin ATMs rises
from around 500 at the beginning of the year to just under 900 by the end of the year; Uber
in Argentina switches to bitcoin payments, and the Swiss national railway and software
website Steam are among new users accepting the currency. The DAO (decentralised
autonomous organisation) is founded in May – a stateless venture capital fund on the
ethereum blockchain and the largest crowdfunded project to date. It is hacked by users a
month after its launch and a third of its assets are siphoned off. As a result, a “fork” takes
place in Ethereum, which splits into Ethereum and Ethereum Classic.

2017.

The much anticipated “Bitcoin cash hard fork” occurs, which splits bitcoin into two
derivative cryptocurrencies: BTC and bitcoin cash. Japan passes a law to accept bitcoin as a
legal payment method, and Skandiabanken in Norway integrates bitcoin accounts and
recognises bitcoin as an investment asset and payment system.

2018.

Samsung confirms it is making chips to mine coins. Various European governments join
forces to cooperate on cryptocurrency regulation, and many continue to launch innovative
partnerships with high-street names, including Ripple’s 2018 app launch with Santander for
international money transfers.