Quote from Ndubuisi Ekekwe on December 9, 2017, 5:51 AM

Bitcoin continues to be hot this week. The following are the key things that happened:

• Trading was between $10,000 and $17,000 with  volatility in between
• Venezuela plans to launch cryptocurrency backed by oil and diamonds
• Australian stock exchange to power system with blockchain
• Major derivatives exchanges like the one in Chicago to launch bitcoin futures contracts opening paths for institutional money to enter Bitcoin mania

Meanwhile, I am sharing the first paper published by the anonymous Bitcoin inventor (link here) on Bitcoin. The paper abstract is reproduced below.

"A purely peer-to-peer version of electronic cash would allow online payments to be sent directly from one party to another without going through a financial institution. Digital signatures provide part of the solution, but the main benefits are lost if a trusted third party is still required to prevent double-spending. We propose a solution to the double-spending problem using a peer-to-peer network. The network timestamps transactions by hashing them into an ongoing chain of hash-based proof-of-work, forming a record that cannot be changed without redoing the proof-of-work. The longest chain not only serves as proof of the sequence of events witnessed, but proof that it came from the largest pool of CPU power. As long as a majority of CPU power is controlled by nodes that are not cooperating to attack the network, they'll generate the longest chain and outpace attackers. The network itself requires minimal structure. Messages are broadcast on a best effort basis, and nodes can leave and rejoin the network at will, accepting the longest proof-of-work chain as proof of what happened while they were gone".

 

Sure, Bitcoin remains risky. Be guided.