Bitcoin turns 18, reaching over $126,000 after tumultuous journey
The world's largest digital currency marked 18 years since its whitepaper was published, having grown from pennies to a market value of $1.56 trillion.
Key takeaways
- 1Bitcoin turned 18 years old on October 31, 2026, based on its whitepaper publication.
- 2Its price reached a new all-time high of over $126,000 in October 2025.
- 3The digital currency's market value stands at $1.56 trillion as of October 31, 2026.
- 4The first US spot Bitcoin ETPs were approved by the SEC in January 2024.
- 5In 2010, 10,000 BTC were used to buy two pizzas, a transaction now worth $780 million.
Bitcoin, the world's largest cryptocurrency, turned 18 on October 31, 2026, marking the anniversary of its whitepaper publication.
Pseudonymous creator Satoshi Nakamoto posted the document, titled "Bitcoin: A Peer-to-Peer Electronic Cash System," to a cryptography mailing list 18 years ago, Cointelegraph reported. The genesis block, mined on January 3, 2009, included a message quoting The Times: "Chancellor on brink of second bailout for banks."
Bitcoin was designed to operate as a peer-to-peer electronic cash system, bypassing traditional financial institutions and removing the need for trust in transactions. It emerged against the backdrop of the 2008 financial crisis.
Its early years included notable events like "Bitcoin Pizza Day" on May 22, 2010, when developer Laszlo Hanyecz spent 10,000 BTC for two pizzas. Those coins would be worth $780 million today, Cointelegraph said. By late 2013, Bitcoin broke through the $1,000 mark for the first time.
The cryptocurrency's journey has been marked by significant challenges. In February 2014, the Mt. Gox exchange collapsed, losing an estimated 850,000 BTC. The network also faced a "block size war" in 2017, leading to the creation of Bitcoin Cash. That same year, China banned initial coin offerings (ICOs) and took action against exchanges, while JPMorgan Chase CEO Jamie Dimon called Bitcoin "a fraud."
During the COVID-19 pandemic, Bitcoin saw a bull run, reaching almost $69,000 by November 2021. However, China again intervened in September 2021 with a sweeping ban on cryptocurrency transactions and mining. The FTX exchange collapse in November 2022 further intensified a crypto winter, leading to significant customer losses and increased regulatory scrutiny.
A turning point arrived in January 2024 when the US Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) approved the first US spot Bitcoin exchange-traded products (ETPs). This approval provided a regulated route for investors to gain exposure to Bitcoin. The price subsequently broke $100,000 by the end of 2024 and hit a new all-time high of more than $126,000 in October 2025, Cointelegraph reported. JPMorgan's Jamie Dimon has since shifted his stance, allowing clients to buy the asset.
Traditional finance continues to integrate with crypto, with banks moving into custody and trading services. Regulatory developments like the Guiding and Establishing National Innovation in US Stablecoins (GENIUS) Act, clearer SEC guidance on crypto assets, and Europe’s Markets in Crypto-Assets Regulation (MiCA) have provided more structured frameworks. However, the institutional embrace has led some Bitcoiners to question whether large institutional holdings are concentrating ownership and centralising supply.
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