Seventeen years have passed since the release of the white paper of Bitcoin, marking the evolution of the first decentralized digital currency from a small-scale experiment into a $2 trillion global asset now held by both institutions and governments.

Bitcoin’s creator, Satoshi Nakamoto, first published the document titled “Bitcoin: A Peer-to-Peer Electronic Cash System” on Oct. 31, 2008, in response to the global financial crisis. The white paper outlined a peer-to-peer network designed to eliminate the problem of double-spending through a proof-of-work (PoW) consensus mechanism.

Just three months later, Nakamoto mined the first-ever Bitcoin block, known as the “genesis block,” earning a reward of 50 BTC and officially launching what would become the world’s largest decentralized network.

Today, Bitcoin ranks as the eighth-most-valuable asset globally, following silver and Amazon, according to CompaniesMarketCap data.

“Since then, we’ve witnessed remarkable growth: institutional adoption, regulatory clarity, and millions of users discovering financial freedom through digital assets,” said Narek Gevorgyan, founder and CEO of CoinStats. “Bitcoin’s journey symbolizes more than market capitalization; it represents a global movement toward transparency, ownership, and innovation.”

A milestone amid market correction

While celebrating this milestone, Bitcoin faces its first negative October performance in seven years. The cryptocurrency has declined by more than 3.5% this month, breaking a six-year streak of gains during what traders often call “Uptober.” Historically, October has been Bitcoin’s second-best month, delivering an average return of 19.9%. The last time it recorded a loss for the month was in 2018, when it dropped 3.8%.

Market sees controlled pullback

This year’s market correction followed a record $19 billion cryptocurrency downturn, pushing Bitcoin to a four-month low of $104,000 on Oct. 17. Analysts have described the move as a “controlled deleveraging,” suggesting that the sell-off could help reduce excessive leverage and establish a more stable foundation for Bitcoin’s next potential growth phase.

Sources:

https://cointelegraph.com/news/bitcoin-white-paper-17-btc-red-october-7-years

https://companiesmarketcap.com/assets-by-market-cap/

https://www.coinglass.com/today

https://bitcoin.org/bitcoin.pdf