Bitcoin the pioneer of the crypto world and in making
Bitcoin the pioneer of the crypto world and in making the blockchain mainstream (to some extent), has many stories right from the anonymity over its founder to the first transaction, these have become a part of Bitcoin folk fair. Today we will look into some of these early transactions made on the network, which has etched itself in the memory of Bitcoin enthusiast.
The first transaction Ever
The First ever bitcoin transaction was initiated by none other than Satoshi Nakamoto, the fictitious inventor of the Bitcoin. The operation commenced on January 12th, 2012. Satoshi transferred 50 BTC to Hal Finney, a cryptographic activist.
The first ever transaction took place on the 170th block on the Bitcoin Ledger. The transfer fees for the same was 0 BTC as the technology was entirely new, and there were not many miners on the network, that they had to deduct a Miner’s fee. Most of the early transactions were done free of cost.
Martti Malmi Sells 5,050 BTC for $5.02
After the completion of the first historical transaction in BTC, the second significant one came just ten months later on the October 12th, 2009. A Netherland based developer Martti Malmi sold 5,050 BTC for $5.02 via PayPal. The transaction holds a great significance as it marked the first crypto-to-fiat exchange in the history of BTC.
The Pizza story
A Florida based computer programmer Laszlo Hanyecz transferred 10,000.99 BTC to a Bitcoin address belonging to Papa John’s Pizzeria in exchange of just 2 Pizzas. The great Pizza transaction is registered on the 57043rd block on the Bitcoin Ledger.
An additional 0.99 BTC was added to the transaction as the Miners fee; this was considered a high amount then.
Mark Karpeles transfers 442,000 BTC
On 23rd June 2011, the CEO of now-closed exchange Mt. Gox, moved a total of 442,000 BTC to two different receivers at the same time. The transferred amount was the most significant BTC transfer then. However, it got displaced by a 550,000 BTC transfer made in November 2011.
The reasoning behind the transfer was unclear, but the amount of BTC transferred itself was huge news.
The fake Murder with a BTC twist
The news came to light in 2013 when a phony murder involving a massive BTC transfer, 1607 BTC to be exact, came to light. A silk road user named Dread Pirate Roberts (DPR) transferred 1607 BTC valued at $150,000 to “red and white.” The money was transferred in exchange of a hit on the silk road operator who was responsible for extorting users on the now-closed underground marketplace.
The hit turned out to be a fake hoax, as the assassin and the blackmailer were the same people. However, the transfer did take place, and one party received 1607 in Bitcoin, a considerably significant amount then.