diff --git a/ch01.asciidoc b/ch01.asciidoc index b6639f6c..759858d7 100644 --- a/ch01.asciidoc +++ b/ch01.asciidoc @@ -45,6 +45,16 @@ The bitcoin network started in 2009, based on a reference implementation publish Satoshi Nakamoto withdrew from the public in April of 2011, leaving the responsibility of developing the code and network to a thriving group of volunteers. The name Satoshi Nakamoto is an alias and the identity of the person or people behind this invention is currently unknown. However, neither Satoshi Nakamoto nor anyone else exerts control over the bitcoin system, which operates based on fully transparent mathematical principles. The invention itself is groundbreaking and has already spawned new science in the fields of distributed computing, economics and econometrics. +Bitcoin has the potential to fix many financial and economic problems that exist today due to flawed centralized systems. Some examples are: +* Hyperinflation that has severly hurt the economies of countries like Argentinian and Zimbabwe. +* 2.5 Billion unbanked around the world who do not benefit from the financial services most do in the developed world. +* Merchants getting charged 2-4% per transaction when accepting credit cards. +* Bank accounts getting frozen, or funds seized from accounts for various reasons. +* People sending money back home and getting charged remittance fees that can range from 2-20%. +* Lack of transparency when performing a wire transfer. +* World travelers getting charged exchange rate fees when using credit cards in foreign countries. +* Citizens of Cyprus having bank accounts frozen for two weeks to secure a Eurozone bailout. + .A Solution To a Distributed Computing Problem ****