Promise and Potential Lead to Growing Appeal

Even if you don’t fully understand what it is, chances are good that you’ve heard of Bitcoin. Bitcoin is one of the most popular and widely used forms of cryptocurrency, a digital or virtual form of currency or exchange. Cryptocurrency is made possible because of blockchain, which IBM defines as “a shared, immutable ledger for recording transactions, tracking assets, and building trust.” It’s the foundation that makes Bitcoin and other cryptocurrencies possible.

Although Bitcoin was officially launched in 2008-09, the groundwork for its creation actually can be traced as far back as 1982 when computer scientist David Chaum first proposed the concept of e-cash and a blockchain protocol.

Cryptocurrencies, and the technology behind them, allow transactions to be both anonymous and secure. These transactions take place in a peer-to-peer environment that removes the intermediary, like a bank…