The Chart of the Week is a weekly Visual Capitalist feature on Fridays.Would you rather have one bitcoin, or a single ounce of gold?The answer used to be obvious.Even at the climax of the legendary 2013 rally, bitcoin was never able to reach unit-for-unit parity with gold.However, since an off-year in 2014, the enigmatic cryptocurrency has steadily climbed in price to take the title of the best-performing currency in both 2015 and 2016.After continuing its rally into 2017, the price of bitcoin has now passed this arbitrary, but psychologically important measure of parity with an ounce of gold.How did we get here so fast?Here are some of the most important events that have shaped the bitcoin market: May 2010: The famous “Bitcoin Pizza” transaction takes place.This is one of the first “real world” transactions, in which one man indirectly paid 10,000 BTC for two Papa John’s pizzas.That works out to a pretty steep price of over $6 million per pizza using today’s prices, but we are sure they were delicious.

Today, May 22 is still celebrated as “Bitcoin Pizza Day” throughout the Bitcoin community.February 2011: Bitcoin hits “dollar parity”.October 2012: Bitpay says 1,000 merchants accept bitcoin payments., Reddit, OKCupid, and The Pirate Bay.Mar 2013: Cyprus bank bail-in.Generally speaking, the European Debt Crisis was a major boon for bitcoin.However, this specific event really put the potential downsides of the banking system and centralized fiat currencies in the limelight.Oct 2013: Silk Road Bust As prices were soaring at the end of 2013, the FBI seized 26,000 BTC from Silk Road and its alleged owner, Ross Ulbricht.Gox files for bankruptcy protection The world’s biggest exchange, which at one point controlled 70% of bitcoin transactions, was plagued with hacks and other problems.It finally went under in 2014.Aug 2015: By this point, 160,000 merchants accept bitcoin payments Dec 2016: Bitcoin is the world’s top performing currency for 2nd straight year See our charts on this for 2015 and 2016.

For enthusiasts and speculators that have followed the cryptocurrency since the beginning, the meteoric rise of bitcoin has been a wild ride.However, despite the feat of reaching unit-for-unit parity with gold, it is important to take in some context.Firstly, there are about 16.2 million BTC in circulation – and there are 5.6 billion oz of gold that have been mined throughout history.For that reason the value of the gold market is still more than 300x higher.bitcoin thorNext, while the value of the bitcoin market has soared exponentially since the early days, it is still only worth about $20 billion in total – this is about half of the value of the average company on the S&P 500 (~$40 billion).bitcoin bot tumblrCompare the bitcoin market to an Apple or Google, and it seems even less extraordinary.bitcoin casino api

But for those people that follow the crypto markets closely, this above context actually represents the potential upside of the digital cryptocurrency.It means bitcoin still has lots of room to soar – and since bitcoin supply is limited and cannot be created out of thin air, there is nowhere for the price to go but up.Bitcoin Price Today in US Dollars The Kitco Bitcoin price Index provides the latest Bitcoin price in US Dollars using an average from the world's leading exchanges.litecoin what is my wallet addressBTCUSD charts and quotes by Bitcoin in Various Currencies Market Quotes by Other Cryptocurrencies vs Bitcoin Market Quotes by Bitcoin Basics WHAT IS BITCOIN?bitcoin mining nvidia linuxBitcoin is a digital currency, which allows transactions to be made without the interference of a central authority.bitcoin yacht

The cryptocurrency system is a peer-to-peer open-source software, meaning computers are part of a mining process for coins.Bitcoin was designed and created by an anonymous programmer, or possibly group of programmers, by the name of Satoshi Nakamoto.HOW CAN I BUY BITCOINS?There are various places to buy bitcoin in exchanges for another currency, with international exchangess available as well as local.Popular international Bitcoin exchangess include Bitsquare, Coinbase, and Kraken.HOW DO I STORE BITCOINS?Bitcoins can be transferred from a bitcoin exchanges to one of many bitcoin wallets, ranging from online options to ‘cold storage’.WHAT CAN YOU BUY BITCOIN WITH?Bitcoin can be purchased through a digital marketplace, through which you can fund your account with your currency of choice, and place an order on the open market.Bank transfers are the most popular mode of payment.The use and trade of Bitcoin is legal in the majority of countries in the world, however, because it is a deregulated marketplace, governments are concerned about its potential threat as a tool for money laundering.

Although mining and exchanging are questionable in terms of legality, it is known to be legal for users who exchanges bitcoins for goods and services.A blockchain is a digital ledger recording cryptocurrency transactions, maintaining records referred to as ‘blocks’ in a linear, chronological order.WHY USE A BLOCKCHAIN?Using a blockchain ensures security and manages digital relationships as part of a system of record.WHAT IS DISTRIBUTED LEDGER?A distributed ledger is a database, digitally recording transaction information using cryptography, making it secure and unforgeable.WHAT IS THE DIFFERENCE BETWEEN A BLOCKCHAIN AND A DATABASE?There are several differences between a blockchain and a database, including the level of control.Blockchains are under a decentralized control, whereas a centralized database creates a dependent relationship between users and administrators.Users tend to prefer confidentiality, which is better achieved through a centralized database.Performance also differs, as a centralized database is able to compute information faster than blockchains.