History of Blockchain
Although blockchain is a relatively new
technology, it already boasts a rich and interesting history. The following is
a brief timeline of some of the most important and notable events in the
development of blockchain.
The first concept of blockchain dates back
to 1991, when the idea of a cryptographically secured chain of records, or
blocks, was introduced by Stuart Haber and Wakefield Scott Stornetta. Two
decades later the technology gained traction and widespread use. The year 2008
marked a pivotal point for blockchain, as Satoshi Nakamoto gave the technology
an established model and planned application. The first blockchain and
cryptocurrency officially launched in 2009, beginning the path of blockchain’s
impact across the tech sphere.
2008
·
Satoshi
Nakamoto, a pseudonym for a person or group, publishes
“Bitcoin:
A peer to Peer Electronic Cash System.”
2009
·
The
first successful Bitcoin (BTC) transaction occurs between computer scientist
Hal Finney and the mysterious Satoshi Nakamoto.
2010
· Florida-based
programmer Laszlo Hanycez completes the first ever purchase using Bitcoin — two
Papa John’s pizzas. Hanycez transferred 10,000 BTCs, worth about $60 at the
time.
·
The
market cap of Bitcoin officially exceeds $1 million.
2011
·
1
BTC = 1 USD, giving the cryptocurrency parity with the US dollar.
·
Electronic
Frontier Foundation, Wikileaks and other organizations start accepting Bitcoin
as donations.
2012
·
Blockchain
and cryptocurrency are mentioned in popular television shows like The Good Wife, injecting blockchain into pop
culture.
·
Bitcoin Magazine launched by early Bitcoin
developer Vitalik Buterin.
2013
·
BTC
market cap surpassed $1 billion.
·
Bitcoin
reached $100/BTC for the first time.
·
Buterin
publishes the “Ethereum Project” paper, suggesting that blockchain has other possibilities
besides Bitcoin (like smart contracts).
2014
·
Companies
Zynga, The D Las Vegas Hotel and Overstock.com all start accepting Bitcoin as
payment.
·
Buterin’s
Ethereum Project is crowdfunded via an Initial Coin Offering (ICO) raising over
$18 million in BTC and opening up new avenues for blockchain.
·
R3,
a group of over 200 blockchain firms, is formed to discover new ways blockchain
can be implemented in technology.
·
PayPal
announces Bitcoin integration.
·
The
first-known NFT is minted
2015
·
Number
of merchants accepting BTC exceeds 100,000.
·
NASDAQ
and San-Francisco blockchain company Chain team up to test the technology for
trading shares in private companies.
2016
·
Tech
giant IBM announces a blockchain strategy for cloud-based business solutions.
·
The
government of Japan recognizes the legitimacy of blockchain and
cryptocurrencies.
2017
·
Bitcoin
reaches $1,000/BTC for the first time.
·
Cryptocurrency
market cap reaches $150 billion.
·
JP
Morgan CEO Jamie Dimon says he believes in blockchain as a future technology,
giving the ledger system a vote-of-confidence from Wall Street.
·
Bitcoin
reaches its all-time high at $19,783.21/BTC.
·
Dubai
announces its government will be blockchain-powered by 2020.
2018
·
Facebook
commits to starting a blockchain group and also hints at the possibility of
creating its own cryptocurrency.
·
IBM
develops a blockchain-based banking platform with large banks like Citi and
Barclays signing on.
2019
·
China’s
President Ji Xinping publicly embraces blockchain as China’s central bank
announces it is working on its own cryptocurrency.
·
Twitter
& Square CEO Jack Dorsey announces that Square will be hiring blockchain
engineers to work on the company’s future crypto plans.
·
The
New York Stock Exchange (NYSE) announces the creation of Bakkt - a digital
wallet company that includes crypto trading.
2020
·
BTC
almost reaches $30,000 by the end of 2020.
·
PayPal
announces it will allow users to buy, sell and hold cryptocurrencies.
·
The
Bahamas becomes the world’s first country to launch its central bank digital
currency, fittingly known as the “Sand Dollar.”
·
Blockchain
becomes a key player in the fight against COVID-19, mainly for securely storing
medical research data and patient information.
2021
·
Bitcoin
surpasses $1 trillion in market value for the first time.
·
Popularity
for the implementation of We3 rises.
·
El
Salvador becomes first nation to adopt Bitcoin as legal tender.
·
Tesla
buys $1.5 billion in BTC, becoming the first car manufacturer to accept Bitcoin
as a form of automobile payment.
·
The Metaverse, a virtual environment incorporating blockchain technology, garners mainstream
attention.
2022
·
Cryptocurrency
loses $2 trillion in market value, due to economic inflation and rising
interest rates.
·
Google
launches a dedicated Digital Assets Team to provide customer support on
blockchain-based platforms.
·
The
U.K. government proposes safeguards for stablecoin holders.
·
Popular
video game Minecraft bans blockchain technologies and NFT use in its game.