Bitcoin: from pizzas to billions of dollars.

I began my journey into the world of crypto with my first post, where I explained what the hell a cryptocurrency is.

Now, it is time to talk about the various projects that make up a world that is as small as it is hyper-active, hyper-loyal, and full of great potential.

Where to start? There is only one starting point: good old "classic" Bitcoin, a digital asset that is 17 years "old" (nothing compared to assets like gold or the dollar itself) but which has experienced growth like no other asset.

I’d say enjoy the read, and I’ll see you at the end.

What is Bitcoin?

Bitcoin is the first, largest by capitalization, and best-known cryptocurrency in the world. It is a form of digital money created in 2009 by an individual (or group) under the pseudonym Satoshi Nakamoto (even today, we still don't know who or what "Satoshi Nakamoto" is). Like any self-respecting cryptocurrency, it possesses the three great qualities that digital currency always has: it is decentralized, transparent, and democratic.

Today, Bitcoin is often compared to digital gold, as many people use it more as a long-term store of value due to its price volatility, rather than as a currency for daily purchases—which would actually be its main use (or should be).

Although there has been recent talk of investment funds and banks taking an interest in Bitcoin, no one has the control to create Bitcoin. The world can only buy, accumulate, or sell the coin. The currency is produced automatically by the mining system that manages Bitcoin. Only if you open and close a block on the blockchain do you earn Bitcoin as a reward for having solved the mathematical puzzle.

Even though those who open and close a block receive Bitcoin, this currency has a limited supply. There will only ever be a maximum of 21 million Bitcoins. This scarcity is written into the code itself and serves to prevent monetary inflation. Once the last Bitcoin is extracted, mining will be sustained by the buying and selling of Bitcoin, effectively increasing speculation. But that is a story for the coming decades.

But how does Bitcoin work? Because it is still a cryptocurrency with a system of computers, servers, and people who make sure everything works while we speculate like crazy.

How does it work?

Decentralization.

Bitcoin operates on a peer-to-peer network. What the hell does that mean? It means that transactions happen directly between users without intermediaries. There is no central server; the network is sustained by thousands of independent computers worldwide that communicate with each other, certify transactions, and save them on the blockchain. No one in the Bitcoin network has the power to authorize or cancel a transaction.

Why must there be communication in the Bitcoin network? The blockchain must be maintained. Since there is no central server managing the blockchain, all computers must communicate to understand who closed the block first, and they must verify that the block is legitimate, avoiding recording the same transaction twice.

The Blockchain.

All transactions are recorded on a public and immutable ledger called the blockchain. This is the standard for every blockchain. You can imagine it as an endless digital accounting book where every "page" (block) is linked to the previous one via advanced cryptography. I wrote about the blockchain process in this post. This makes it almost impossible to forge transactions or spend the same money twice.

Like any good blockchain, transactions do not require real names but are linked to alphanumeric addresses (though they are traceable on the blockchain). Once a transaction is confirmed, it cannot be reversed. Anyone with an internet connection and a "wallet" (digital wallet) can send or receive Bitcoin anywhere in the world, 24 hours a day, and this transaction will be recorded on the blockchain.

Mining.

Creating the blockchain is not something simple. Those who manage, control, and protect the network use very powerful hardware to solve complex mathematical problems used to verify transactions and secure the network. In exchange for this work, they receive a small amount of new Bitcoin as a reward. This process is called "mining," and those who carry it out are called "miners," who can be either individuals or groups of people.

Halving.

The halving is a pre-programmed event in the Bitcoin protocol that occurs roughly every four years (or, more precisely, every 210,000 blocks mined) and consists of cutting in half the reward that miners receive for adding new blocks to the blockchain. This mechanism is the heart of Bitcoin's deflationary monetary policy: by periodically reducing the rate at which new pieces are created, it ensures that the total supply never exceeds the maximum limit of 21 million. Historically, the halving acts as a powerful catalyst for the price, as it creates a "supply shock": if demand remains constant or increases while the production of new Bitcoin decreases, the value tends to rise in the long run. The last halving occurred in April 2024, reducing the reward from 3.125 to 1.5625 BTC, and the next one is expected in 2028, halving the supply again.

History.

The history of Bitcoin is a fascinating journey, damn well full of money and controversy. It all starts from a radical idea of financial freedom to becoming an asset traded on stock exchanges around the world.

Origins and Satoshi Nakamoto (2008-2009).

It all begins on October 31, 2008, in the midst of the global financial crisis. Everything was collapsing, people were losing their jobs, lifelong savings were being wiped out, and entire countries were falling into recession. It was a crisis so severe that nations like Greece, Spain, and Italy are still paying the consequences.

During that period of total depression, a user or group under the pseudonym Satoshi Nakamoto published a technical document (white paper) on a cryptography mailing list titled "Bitcoin: A Peer-to-Peer Electronic Cash System." That manifesto took everything that had been tried in the past and everything the world was experiencing and took the best of both worlds: creating a currency (the good) but removing banks as intermediaries (the evil).

On January 3, 2009, the first block of the blockchain, the "Genesis Block," was mined. Inside it, Nakamoto inserted a text message: "The Times 03/Jan/2009 Chancellor on brink of second bailout for banks," a critical reference to the instability of the traditional banking system. Nine days later, on January 12, 2009, the first transaction took place between Nakamoto and developer Hal Finney.

The Pioneer Period (2010-2012).

In the early years of its existence, Bitcoin was just an idea, a vision that could be used. The currency had almost no economic value, but the community of enthusiasts around the digital currency grew. Everyone was ecstatic about this new technology and the potential it had. However, it had no utility, nor any media or financial attention.

Then comes May 22, 2010. Why is this day important? In the crypto world, it is a milestone. This is the infamous Pizza Day. It’s not some code name or a black day. Quite the opposite: a programmer named Laszlo Hanyecz bought two pizzas that day. Instead of paying for them in cash, like any ordinary mortal on planet Earth, he decided to spend 10,000 BTC (at the time worth about 40 dollars). That is considered the first commercial transaction with Bitcoin in history. Keep this figure of 10,000 Bitcoin in mind, because later I will show you how stupid this choice to buy two pizzas was in hindsight.

The project was gaining ground, and more and more people were taking part in the change Bitcoin promised. Everything was going the right way when, suddenly, in 2011, Nakamoto sent his last emails, handed over control of the code to other developers, and disappeared into thin air. Since that year, no one has ever heard from Satoshi Nakamoto again. His wallet still exists on the blockchain, but it has been inactive since 2011. His identity remains the greatest mystery in the tech world and one of the most fascinating topics for conspiracy theorists.

Growth and Controversies (2013-2016).

Bitcoin grew as a community, in resonance, and also in price. Between 2013 and 2016, the price went from a few cents to a couple of thousand dollars. This growth began to attract the attention of the media, which started to inform themselves about what was something completely new for the time.

The media attention, unfortunately, shifted from being something positive to something negative. I am talking about Silk Road, the first major test for Bitcoin's media resilience. For those who don't know, the Silk Road was the largest e-shop on the deep web, where you could buy drugs, weapons, and anything illegal you could think of. The site turned over billions a year, and it took the FBI years to shut it down. When it was finally closed by the FBI in 2013, tens of thousands of Bitcoins were seized—the only currency accepted on Silk Road, specifically for its protection of personal data. In the media, the currency was immediately associated with the Silk Road black market as the "means that financed internet crime!"

This blow had two effects: a negative one, as it obviously cast a shadow on Bitcoin's reputation, but it also proved its effectiveness as an uncensorable currency. It was the classic half-full glass: a media flop, but an enviable technical success.

The following year, Bitcoin was back in the media spotlight, but this time the technology had nothing to do with what happened. The largest exchange at the time (Mt. Gox) suffered a hacker attack and lost about 850,000 BTC (now worth tens of billions of dollars). Of those Bitcoins, only a small part would be recovered in 2024 and returned to the owners, creating panic in the crypto market. The rest remains lost. In that distant 2014, the price collapsed, but the Bitcoin network survived, demonstrating resilience.

The 2017 Bubble and the Global Rise.

Two years of "calm" passed (after Silk Road and Mt. Gox), leading into 2017. What happened then makes no sense whatsoever. In that year, Bitcoin went from about 1,000 dollars to nearly 20,000 dollars in December. During this period, given the massive media attention surrounding Bitcoin, many other cryptocurrencies were born, such as Ethereum. At that point, the mass public, who had no idea what a cryptocurrency was, became aware of terms like "blockchain," "cryptography," and "mining." Those same people would invest in Bitcoin, lose a lot of money, and start screaming that "Bitcoin and crypto are a scam." The problem, as in any investment, is not the asset itself but when you invest. You cannot expect to invest in an asset when it has reached its peak. Unfortunately, people don't understand this and cry wolf when the wolf doesn't exist.

Institutionalization and Adoption (2020-Today).

From 2017 until 2020, there was radio silence. The price crashed, as in all speculative bubbles, people moved away from the asset, and it seemed that Bitcoin's heyday was over. In truth, we hadn't seen anything yet.

In 2020, Bitcoin entered a new phase. The first big step was taken by Tesla, which began purchasing small amounts of Bitcoin; then came MicroStrategy. MicroStrategy is the real "hero" of the story. Since MicroStrategy entered the arena, it began buying Bitcoin as if there were no tomorrow, even accumulating up to 600,000 Bitcoin by 2025, buying even at 100,000 dollars per Bitcoin.

This entry opened the doors to so-called "smart money"—the capital from Wall Street or finance in general—bringing billions in investment into Bitcoin, both in the asset and in the mining infrastructure.

Furthermore, 2020 is also famous for the COVID-19 pandemic, which had the magnificent effect of flooding the financial market with more money than had been seen in a long time, thanks to 0% interest rates and direct aid from central banks. That was the moment everyone invested in crypto, and there was a general euphoria unlike anything ever seen. 2020/2021 was the turning point because "smart money" understood the speculative potential of cryptocurrencies.

In 2024, the first Bitcoin ETFs were approved in the United States, allowing large investment funds and ordinary savers to gain exposure to the price of Bitcoin through traditional banking channels. It’s an incredible moment: big finance has entered the world of crypto. In the same year, this news caused the price to explode from just over 10,000 dollars to 70,000 dollars in March of that year.

In parallel, governments also became interested in Bitcoin. El Salvador (2021) became the first country in the world to adopt Bitcoin as legal tender alongside the dollar, and in 2025, Donald Trump based his electoral campaign partly on the crypto world, promising the moon and then delivering only a pebble. Just the fact that Donald Trump, future president of the United States, spoke positively about Bitcoin led the price to reach up to 120,000 dollars per coin in 2025—an astronomical figure, considering that in 2009 Bitcoin was worth only a few cents.

The Economic Potential!

The beauty of Bitcoin is that it is not an asset like gold that remains stable but an asset that explodes with almost clockwork regularity every four years, generally one year after the halving. This allows investors to plan their harvest, investing at the lowest point and leaving at the highest.

The moments of growth are called "bull runs" and the moments of decline "bear markets." The great thing about these surges and crashes is that they are not only predictable but also intense. Just to give you an idea... oh, for this part, I will use those 10,000 Bitcoins used to pay for two pizzas.

Initial Value (2009 - 2011).

In 2009, Bitcoin had no market price. In 2010, a year after its creation, the value was still less than 1 dollar. During this period, the famous purchase of two pizzas for 10,000 BTC took place, worth 40 dollars (one Bitcoin was worth 0.004 dollars). Only in 2011 did Bitcoin reach parity with the dollar ($1) for the first time. If you haven't grasped the impact, those 10,000 Bitcoins went from being worth 40 dollars to 10,000. This is not considered the first speculative bubble because there wasn't that media attention, but it was still enormous growth.

The First Bubbles and Mt. Gox (2013 - 2015).

In 2013, we had the first real speculative bubble. Bitcoin exceeded $1,000 for the first time. Those 10,000 Bitcoins would have had a value of 10 million dollars (remember, bought for 40 dollars in 2010). Then Mt. Gox decided to explode, lose nearly a million Bitcoin, and cause the price to collapse. In 2015, a "bear market" period followed, with the price crashing until it stayed steady around $200 - $400 (the value of the 10,000 bitcoins was between 2 and 4 million dollars).

The 2017 Run and Consolidation.

Until 2017, there was nothing significant to report. Then came 2017, the year of the media explosion. Due to a suddenly very liquid market and irrational, crazy investments, Bitcoin rose vertically from $1,000 to nearly $20,000 in December, attracting the attention of the general public. Those famous 10,000 Bitcoins from 2010 would now be worth 200 million dollars. That crazy person who used that Bitcoin to buy two pizzas would now be a multimillionaire. Then the bubble burst, and a deep correction phase began, where the price crashed to $3,200 before recovering toward $10,000. The 10,000 Bitcoins would still be worth 100 million.

The Institutional Era (2020 - 2024).

In 2021, after the 2017 speculative bubble, companies like Tesla and MicroStrategy entered the conversation, where Bitcoin touched a new all-time high above $69,000. Now, those 10,000 Bitcoins would be worth 690 million dollars. As it had always been previously, the bubble burst; 2022 was a difficult year, marked by the collapse of FTX and the Federal Reserve's interest rate hikes, which brought the price back toward $16,000 before a new ascent. Even at that moment, those 10,000 Bitcoins would be worth 160 million dollars.

Then we have 2024. In January of that year, ETFs were approved in the United States. Additionally, we had the Halving. These two events pushed the price again, which in April exceeded $73,000. Now, those 10,000 Bitcoins are worth 730 million. We are almost at a billion dollars in assets. Then, in 2025, we had prices over 120,000 dollars. Those famous 10,000 Bitcoins would have had a value of 1.2 billion dollars. You don't just buy two pizzas with that; you buy the entire pizzeria.

Is there still potential?

It is truly difficult to predict how the price will go. Being a market with little liquidity and being very small, even just a few billion in investments (which is very feasible in finance) could see prices shoot up to levels never seen before. However, particular conditions must exist. Being a volatile asset, those with money (but also those without) will only invest if there is a certain lightness about losing money. The economy must grow—no wars or moments that could destabilize the global economy. It is not simple to see Bitcoin explode. One hopes for it, but it is not something that can be predicted 100%. Theoretically yes, if the economy is stable. With conflicts or madmen in government, it becomes an almost impossible feat.

Medium-term forecast!

2026 is considered a year of consolidation after the 2024 halving and the highs touched in 2025. According to some, it could return to $100,000 (roughly €93,000) after touching a possible "floor" around $50,000. Others indicate an average target around $98,000 - $99,000, with the possibility of exceeding $115,000 by the end of the year if the bullish trend continues. Still others maintain a constructive view, hypothesizing that the price could test the $170,000 area again by mid-2027 once financial leverage on futures markets has stabilized.

Long-Term Forecasts.

For a more distant future, around 2030, estimates become much bolder, based on mass institutional adoption. Adoption that, so far, does not exist at all. The only reason anyone talks about crypto is price values. No one thinks of crypto (in 2026) as an alternative to the current world or today's finance. Some speak of prices around 200,000, 500,000, or even a million dollars for Bitcoin by 2030.

As you can see, no one knows what will happen. Many talk, but no one knows! What you can do is inform yourself, read, and make your move, should your finances allow it.

Small Reflections.

In conclusion, Bitcoin has gone from being a toy for nerds to an asset that makes central banks tremble and moves the presidents of the United States. Whether it reaches a million dollars or returns to five thousand, its legacy is already written: it gave financial power back to the people. Now that we understand the "King," we are ready to descend into the undergrowth of other cryptos.

Get your wallets ready; the journey continues.

M.