Satoshi Nakamoto released the Bitcoin whitepaper on the cypherpunk mailing list in October 2008. The whitepaper detailed principles behind the proposal and the concept of the Bitcoin blockchain. The Bitcoin protocol went live in early 2009.

In January 2009, the first 50 bitcoin (BTC) were generated through a process called mining. Since then, over 17 Million BTC have been mined. A maximum of 21 million BTC can be mined.

The first real-world payment made with BTC took place in May 2010. A developer and early BTC adopter named Laszlo Hanyecz offered 10,000 BTC to anyone who would make and deliver two pizzas to him. Luckily for Laszlo, Papa John's fulfilled his wish.

In the following years, the adoption and use of BTC as currency increased worldwide.

For more information about who created Bitcoin, take a look at our academy article.