Bitcoin’s white paper turned 17 today, marking the evolution of the world’s first decentralized digital currency from a niche experiment into a global financial asset worth $2 trillion.
On Oct. 31, 2008, Bitcoin creator Satoshi Nakamoto released the nine-page document titled “Bitcoin: A Peer-to-Peer Electronic Cash System. The paper proposed a decentralized network capable of preventing double-spending through proof-of-work (PoW) consensus a mechanism that remains the foundation of Bitcoin’s operation today.
Just three months later, Nakamoto launched the network’s genesis block, minting 50 Bitcoin (BTC) as the first block reward. Since then, Bitcoin has evolved into the world’s eighth-most-valuable asset, surpassing giants such as Amazon and Silver, according to CompaniesMarketCap data.
Bitcoin’s first ‘red October’ since 2018
Despite the historic milestone, Bitcoin’s price performance has lagged this month. The world’s largest cryptocurrency is down 3.5% in October, marking its first monthly decline for the period since 2018, according to CoinGlass.
October has traditionally been one of Bitcoin’s strongest months, often referred to as “Uptober” due to its historically positive returns averaging nearly 20% over the past decade. The last negative October performance came in 2018, when Bitcoin fell 3.8% amid a broader market downturn.
Earlier this month, the cryptocurrency market faced a sharp $19 billion correction, sending Bitcoin’s price to a four-month low of $104,000 on Oct. 17. Analysts have described the move as a “controlled deleveraging,” viewing it as a necessary reset to clear excessive leverage and set up a more sustainable price structure.