Lowdown On Bitcoins, Prices, Other Details Of Blockchain Technology

Without a central repository or single administrator, Bitcoin was invented by an unknown person or a group of people under the name 'Satoshi Nakamoto' and released as open source software in 2009. The system is peer-to-peer, and transactions take place between users directly, without an intermediary. These transactions are verified by network nodes and recorded in a public distributed ledger called a blockhain. Bitcoins are created as a reward for a process known as bitcoin mining. They can be exchanged for other currencies, products, and services. As of February 2015, over 100,000 merchants and vendors accepted bitcoin as payment. Bitcoin can also be held as an investment.

Are bitcoins regulated in India?

The structure of blockchain technology that is used in bitcoins makes sure that the parties involved remain anonymous as the system offers randomly generated name and key. However, Union Finance Minister Arun Jaitley admitted that bitcoins are not legal tenders in India as yet. "Recommendations are being worked at. The government's position is clear, we don't recognise this as legal currency as of now," he was quoted as saying.

The Reserve Bank of India (RBI) had once warned the public against the use of virtual currencies by releasing a statement that those who are trading in bitcoins are doing so at their own risk. This happened after the banking regulator noticed a growing interest in virtual currencies, which was seen as risky, since it is prone to theft and is seen as an asset with no underlying value.

Can you buy bitcoins in India?

Yes, you can buy the bitcoins via bitcoin wallets. There are wallet firms in India such as Unocoin (Bangalore-based), Zebpay (Mumbai, Ahmedabad-based) and Coinsecure (New Delhi-based). You can buy bitcoins in the Indian National Rupee (INR) by transferring money through NEFT/RTGS. And when you sell bitcoins, the money (in the Indian currency, of course) is transferred to the bank.

What is the current price of bitcoins in US Dollars?

Currently, bitcoin is priced at $11,304 (on December 3, 2017) and Rs 8,50,300 in the Indian market.

Why are the prices rising so sharply?

Bitcoin prices have risen sharply in the past year-and-a-half. Last September, bitcoins were priced around $600-700 in the international market and now, the prices are hovering around $10,000-$11,000. Bitcoin prices are rising chiefly because of a proliferation of interest in it and an ever-growing speculation that the currency, being based on the latest technology of blockchain, will continue to grow by leaps and bounds. According to research produced by Cambridge University in 2017, there are 2.9 to 5.8 million unique users using a cryptocurrency wallet, most of them using bitcoins. Besides this, new bitcoins are created in a regular and limited numbers which are halved from time to time. The next halving will happen in the mid-2020.