In the modern world, the community is not surprised by retail stores that accept BTC as a form of payment. In fact, when McDonald’s allowed customers to pay with BTC, the Twitter crypto community questioned when the other stores would start adopting this new revolutionary form of payment. Moreover, BTC’s fame was boosted when El Salvador’s President Nayib Bukele proposed to make the king of cryptocurrencies the legal tender of the country.
However, this was not always the case! When the concept of Bitcoin was proposed in 2008 as the people’s shield against the world’s reliance on banks, there were many skeptics concerned about BTC’s utilities. Many claimed that the introduction of Bitcoin is just a fad and that the trend would end soon. However, after two decades, Bitcoin has become part of the real economy and is creating a huge impact nationwide.
Of course, many of us believe that the price and utility of BTC will continue to grow. However, there was always a first-time event for this well-known cryptocurrency. For instance, during the dawn of Bitcoin, BTC witnessed its first real transaction. So, who conducted the first real-time transaction with Bitcoin? And, what specific item was involved in BTC’s first real-time transaction?
Let’s take a deeper look at the birth of Bitcoin Pizza Day and what it signifies for the crypto community.
The Birth of Bitcoin Pizza Day
So, what is Bitcoin Pizza Day? Basically, a ‘legend’ (yes, a legend) decided to purchase two Papa Johns pizzas with 10,000 Bitcoin! You read that right,10,000 BTC.
Back in 2010, when Bitcoin’s price was less than $1 and crypto adoption was still quite low among the community, a Florida-based developer reached out to the Bitcoin forum asking if anyone would buy him pizza in exchange for Bitcoins.
To be specific, the Florida-based developer stated:
I’ll pay 10,000 bitcoins for a couple of pizzas.. like maybe 2 large ones so I have some leftover for the next day. I like having leftover pizza to nibble on later. You can make the pizza yourself and bring it to my house or order it for me from a delivery place, but what I’m aiming for is getting food delivered in exchange for bitcoins.
After the developer made his request, many users in the Bitcoin forum found it difficult to purchase the pizza for the Florida-based developer, stating geographical barriers as one of the main reasons.
However, four days later, the Florida-based developer reported that he had successfully traded 10,000 bitcoins for pizza, sharing a picture of him and his family enjoying the treat. So who was that “legend?” It was none other than Laszlo Hanyecz who made history in the crypto community by showing the world Bitcoin’s first real-time transaction by purchasing pizzas with a digital coin.
In the end, Hanyecz also thanked Jeremy Sturdivant, who also goes by the user name ‘jercos’ in the Bitcoin Forum. This indicated that Hanyecz’s wishes were met – the transaction was successful – thus, Bitcoin Pizza Day was formed!
Why Does Bitcoin Pizza Day Matter?
Some people might be wondering, “Bitcoins and Pizza?!! How did that combination become so important?” Here’s the thing. Bitcoin was a new decentralized digital currency that was still in its early stages. At a very young phase, Bitcoin was able to conduct real-time transactions for the very first time, which some altcoins are still struggling to do. Eventually, making Bitcoins and Pizza a popular event.
Allow me to further simplify it for you. People used to barter goods and services in the past instead of exchanging them for money. Many historians believe that the Mesopotamian shekel was the first currency ever.
Now Imagine this, you decided to buy a flatbread with toppings (aka pizza in modern times) and traded it with Mesopotamian shekel, instead of bartering it for some good or service. By trading with currency, you broke an old traditional system which was complicated and confusing.
Bitcoin, a revolutionary idea, was formed to create a decentralized system for users and challenge the traditional fiat currencies, thus breaking the chains of control made by the central authority.
The community thought that Bitcoin would just be another trend or fad, that would die in the future. However, BTC rose in value with transfers happening from one wallet to another. Currently, many individuals are seeking to invest in BTC believing that the king of cryptocurrencies’ value and utility function could develop as time passes. Moreover, it has been proven that BTC would continue to exist as various banks have shut down after facing tough financial weather.
Concurrently, Hanyecz was the one to prove BTC can be used to conduct real-time transactions at an early stage of Bitcoin, thus, marking Bitcoin Pizza Day as one of the most historic moments in the crypto industry.
BTC: The Journey After Bitcoin Pizza Day
Bitcoin has traveled a long way ever since, hitting milestones like reaching its all-time high to becoming a country’s legal tender. Thus, proving that the BTC aka the crypto leader has potential that is yet to be discovered.
Many people often see Bitcoin only for its price and have not opened their eyes to see its greater benefits. However, BTC has continuously proved that it’s more than just an opportunity to get rich. Let’s break down BTC’s adventure, starting 2011:
2011 – The Launchpad for BTC’s Real-Economy Performance
In 2011, Forbes reported that WikiLeaks has started to accept BTC as donations, indicating that industries have started to accept BTC as a form of payment. Moreover, the launch of BitPay, a Bitcoin payment service provider, helped boost BTC’s adoption
2012 – BTC’s Travel Across The World
This year BTC traveled to various countries as BitPay reported that over 1000 merchants were using the company’s services to accept Bitcoin as a mode of payment. Moreover, BitPay highlighted that the majority of their merchants were from the USA, UK, Canada, Australia, and Finland.
2013 – Meet the First-Ever BTC ATM
Finally, after Bitcoin started to become quite popular, the first BTC ATM, built by a Nevada company called Robocoin, was introduced in Canada. This machine would act as a medium, allowing users to trade bitcoins for cash easily. Another feather in the hat for BTC was that approximately $1 million worth of BTC was sold in 30 days.
2014 – Bitcoin’s Entry Into The Hospitality Sector
The D Las Vegas Casino Hotel and Golden Gate Hotel & Casino properties announced that they started to accept Bitcoin as a payment method through BitPay. Also, BitPay made a sponsorship deal with ESPN Events where BTC was accepted for ticket and concession sales at the game as part of the sponsorship deal.
2015 – BTC’s Touch in The Art Industry
The Austrian Museum of Applied Arts/Contemporary Art (MAK) became the first museum in the world to purchase artwork called Event Listeners, using BTC. Once again, the International Business Times reported that 100,000 retailers accepted BTC as a form of payment. Some of those industries included Microsoft, Dell, Wikipedia, Twitch, and Greenpeace.
2016 – Bitcoin Recognized as ‘Real Money’
By 2016, BTC and digital assets caught the attention of many nations including Japan. The Cabinet approved a set of bills to help banking industries to understand the technology and recognize virtual currencies similar to real money. Also, the Swiss Railway’s operator made a breakthrough by updating their automated ticket machine, which allowed users to buy a “Bitcoin paper wallet.”
2017 – BTC’s Symbol Receives International Recognition
Bitcoin’s symbol finally earned its place in Unicode version 10.0 at the position of “U+20BF,” indicating the digital asset had been recognized by various industry experts. CNBC reported that Japan legalized cryptocurrency as a payment method, while Russia made plans to regulate it.
2018 – Bitcoin Meets G20 Leaders
The G20 Financial Stability Board opined that crypto assets did not pose a threat to financial stability anymore. Even though there were bans on crypto ads, Facebook and Google allowed few industries to run their ads across the digital public sphere.
2019 – BTC Joins NASDAQ Stock Exchange
The NASDAQ stock exchange announced that it would be sending real-time Bitcoin and Ethereum Index-level information on the Nasdaq Global Index Data Service SM (GIDS). BTC’s price experienced a short burst of surge after China’s President Xi Jinping’s speech about the opportunity presented by blockchain.
2020 – Bitcoin’s Halving Event
One of the main events observed in the crypto community is the BTC halving, which played a major role in affecting Bitcoin’s prices. In May of 2020, after the halving event, it was observed that BTC experienced a price surge. Also, various institutions started to allocate some of their investments to the top leading cryptocurrency, Bitcoin. Some of the institutions such as CitiBank, Grayscale, Stanley Druckenmiller, and MicroStrategy showed interest in the digital currency this year.
2021 – BTC Becomes the Legal Tender of El Salvador
BTC became the legal tender alongside the US dollar for a North American country. The idea was proposed by El Salvador’s President Nayib Bukele and, a few days later, the Legislative Assembly of El Salvador made the decision. Furthermore, BTC reached its All-Time High at $68,789.63 in November, according to CoinMarketCap.
2022 – Bitcoin Experiences 100% Uptime
This was considered one of the toughest years for the digital asset industry as the collapse of various crypto industries sent a ripple effect across the sector. However, reportedly, BTC managed to function 100%, facing no hard forks, hacks, or bugs within its network. Additionally, with the introduction of Machankura, a non-custodial wallet, users were allowed to send and receive BTC with just a basic phone.
When is Bitcoin Pizza Day and How Can You Celebrate It?
To commemorate BTC’s first real-time transaction, the crypto community celebrates Bitcoin Pizza Day on May 22 every year. The annual Bitcoin Pizza Day’s anniversary is also a celebration of BTC’s progress throughout the years.
However, there are still new and upcoming crypto enthusiasts who would like to partake in Bitcoin Pizza Day and are still unaware of how to celebrate this historical event.
So, let’s take a look at the different ways to celebrate BTC’s first real-time transaction. Here are some fun ideas to celebrate Bitcoin Pizza Day:
1. Buy Pizza with Bitcoin:
To be specific, buy two large Papa Johns Pizzas just like Laszlo Hanyecz. As many countries are recognizing the importance of cryptos, there are retail traders that accept Bitcoin as a payment method. However, on the off-chance retail traders do not accept crypto, few crypto exchanges offer the chance to buy gift cards for different retail stores.
2. Celebrating With Bitcoin Pizza Enthusiasts:
There are various crypto communities across the industry that are always looking to celebrate this historic event. One way to celebrate with them is through the social media platforms such as Facebook, Instagram, and Twitter. Binance will be hosting many events and offering pizza for its crypto community in various locations. Moreover, crypto exchanges will also be offering promotions and offers especially for Bitcoin Pizza Day, which users and traders could take advantage of.
3. Be Kind, and Donate BTC:
If you are feeling humble and empathetic, this method of celebrating Bitcoin Pizza Day is for you. Users can donate some of their BTC to various charitable causes which could help make this world better.
The Future of Bitcoin
It is evident that Bitcoin Pizza Day paved the path for further development and upgrades that supported the cause for BTC and cryptocurrencies’ adoption. Looking through the Bitcoins journey, we can see that the leader of cryptocurrencies faced difficulties and criticisms initially, however, it continued to build and improve its features. Moreover, potential investors and crypto enthusiasts believe that as time passes, BTC’s price and adoption would continue to grow. Ultimately, Bitcoin would continue to revolutionize various industries across the world.
FAQ
Bitcoin Pizza Day marks the first real-time transaction conducted with BTC, which opened the path for future transactions with cryptocurrencies and boosted digital assets adoption. On May 22, Laszlo Hanyecz purchased 2 large Papa Johns Pizza for 10,000 BTC.
There are different ways to celebrate Bitcoin Pizza Day, such as buying Pizza with BTC, donating to charitable causes with Bitcoin, celebrating it with crypto communities, and taking advantage of deals with various digital asset industries.
BTC is currently trading at $26,854.12, while facing a fall of 0.84% in 24 hours, at the reported time.
Many investors and crypto enthusiasts speculate that BTC’s price would continue to rise over time. Moreover, BTC’s utility in various industries would continue to flourish as the years go.
Disclaimer: The information presented in this article is for informational and educational purposes only. The article does not constitute financial advice or advice of any kind. Coin Edition is not responsible for any losses incurred as a result of the utilization of content, products, or services mentioned. Readers are advised to exercise caution before taking any action related to the company.
