Bitcoin is the most popular digital money in the world. In another way, they are called cryptocurrencies - this is a program code that is maximally protected from hacking.

Bitcoin cannot be cashed out because the currency does not physically exist. There are only special registries where records are kept of how many bitcoins someone has and who transfers them to where. Registers are not stored in banks and payment systems, but decentralized: on all computers that are occupied with bitcoins. This means that anyone can see all transactions with bitcoins throughout history and it will be impossible to falsify this data. And bitcoin is not controlled by the state or any private company.

Bitcoin has become a solution for those who have lost faith in central banks, live in a country with a falling economy or an unstable currency. Cryptocurrency allows you to transfer money anonymously and without the participation of banks. For this reason, bitcoin has become popular in the shadow market, and with its help they buy goods that are prohibited for circulation and make illegal transactions. But bitcoin can also buy legal things, like Dell computers in the US.

However, it is not necessary to buy something specifically for bitcoins: they can be converted into the usual currency. Or trade bitcoins on the stock exchange: since 2015, the main cryptocurrency has risen in price from $200 to $57,000, which made it interesting for investors. Bitcoins can also be used for domestic purposes, for example, sending digital money to relatives abroad, instead of losing part of the funds due to currency exchange.

To transfer money and pay for services, it is enough to create a bitcoin wallet and set a private password. If you lose this access key, the money will disappear forever, because the wallet cannot be restored centrally by calling the bank. For example, in January, a US programmer lost the password to a flash drive containing 7,002 bitcoins—the equivalent of hundreds of millions of dollars. Such cases are not uncommon, especially if a person bought cryptocurrency at the dawn of bitcoin, in 2008, when it cost a little more than a dollar, and did not treat the wallet with due attention.