Bitcoin is often described as anonymous, but that’s not quite accurate. Bitcoin transactions don’t normally contain your name, home address, or phone number. However, transactions are recorded permanently on a public blockchain, meaning anyone can examine the movement of Bitcoin between addresses. This makes Bitcoin better described as pseudonymous rather than completely anonymous. If someone … Read more
Bitcoin transactions can involve amounts ranging from millions of dollars to just a few satoshis. But extremely small Bitcoin amounts can create a problem that many beginners don’t discover until they start examining their transactions more closely. These tiny amounts are commonly referred to as Bitcoin dust. Bitcoin dust isn’t a separate type of Bitcoin, … Read more
If you have ever created a modern Bitcoin wallet, you may have been given a list of 12 or 24 words and told to store it somewhere safe. Those words can be used to recover your wallet. But how can one backup create access to multiple Bitcoin addresses, private keys, and transactions? The answer is … Read more
If you have ever wondered how a business can protect Bitcoin without trusting a single person with complete control, Bitcoin multisig is one of the most important concepts to understand. A multisignature wallet can require multiple private keys to approve a Bitcoin transaction instead of relying on just one key. This can reduce the risks … Read more
When people first learn how Bitcoin works, they usually hear about wallets, private keys, blocks, miners, and transactions. But there is another important piece of Bitcoin’s architecture that often gets overlooked: Bitcoin Script. Bitcoin Script is the programming language used to define the conditions under which Bitcoin can be spent. It is what allows a … Read more
Bitcoin was originally designed primarily as a decentralized digital currency. But over the years, developers have found new ways to use Bitcoin’s blockchain for more than simply transferring BTC. One of the more recent developments is Bitcoin Runes. The Runes Protocol is a system for creating and managing fungible tokens on the Bitcoin blockchain. That … Read more
Introduction What are Bitcoin Ordinals? Bitcoin Ordinals are a system for identifying and tracking individual satoshis, the smallest units of Bitcoin. The Ordinals protocol assigns a unique number to each satoshi and provides a way to associate additional data with individual satoshis through what are called inscriptions. This created a new way to use Bitcoin’s … Read more
Introduction What is Bitcoin Taproot? Taproot is a major Bitcoin protocol upgrade that improved the network’s privacy, efficiency, and scripting capabilities. It was activated on the Bitcoin mainnet in 2021 and introduced a new spending system built around Schnorr signatures, Taproot spending rules, and Tapscript. For beginners, however, Taproot can sound much more complicated than … Read more
Introduction What is a Bitcoin UTXO? A UTXO, short for Unspent Transaction Output, is one of the fundamental building blocks of how Bitcoin tracks ownership and processes transactions. Unlike traditional bank accounts, Bitcoin does not keep a simple balance for each wallet. Instead, the Bitcoin network tracks individual pieces of bitcoin that previous transactions created … Read more
What is a liquidity pool? A liquidity pool is a collection of cryptocurrency tokens locked inside a smart contract. These pools provide the funds that decentralized applications, especially decentralized exchanges (DEXs), use to facilitate trading and other financial activities. Unlike a traditional crypto exchange, where buyers and sellers are matched through an order book, many … Read more