Bitcoin’s massive price fluctuations have been captivating the minds of traders and investors for over a decade.
The initial exchange rate for Bitcoin, the leading cryptocurrency, was established 15 years ago on Oct. 5, 2009, on the New Liberty Standard Exchange.
As noted by Pete Rizzo, a prominent Bitcoin historian, the price of the flagship cryptocurrency has surged by a staggering 8,700,000,000% since then.
Back then, the world’s original cryptocurrency was less than a fraction of a cent back then.
The exchange rate that was published by the New Liberty Standsard established the value of the cryptocurrency at $1 = 1,309.03 BTC. It was determined based on the cost of electricity that would be needed to run a computer in order to mine Bitcoin.
The first known Bitcoin-to-USD transaction was conducted by Finnish computer scientist Martti Malmi. Malmi famously sold a whopping 5,550 BTC for only roughly $5 via PaPal transfer.
Back then, of course, Bitcoin was yet to attract even a moderate following.
During Bitcoin’s early days, Malmi managed to mine a total of 55,000 BTC. However, he ended up selling his Bitcoin fortune in 2012 when the price was less than $30 in order to purchase an apartment in Helsinki and then liquidated the rest of his holdings when he moved to Japan.
Malmi could have attained billionaire status had he decided to keep holding his coins. While he described that his decisions as “regretful,” the second-ever Bitcoin developer also claimed that making money was never his first priority. He said that his Bitcoin fortune was an accidental byproduct of Satoshi asking him to keep his node running so others could connect.