CORE MAGAZINE February 2017 | Page 24

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Bitcoin is now eight years old. The blockchain has been growing ever since January 3, 2009 at 2:15PM EST, when the genesis block was created. Dying more than 115 times, according to the obituary registry, Bitcoin was often surrounded by negativity in its earliest days (and even now). However, the experiment progressed into what it is today, a highly functional and used decentralized payment system.

Bitcoin was the prime subject of debate in China’s “most cutting-edge and most influential financial talk show,” a highly popular national TV segment with millions of viewers. The topic of debated was “Bitcoin, fortune maker or Ponzi scheme?” featuring professor Larry Hsien Ping Lang, described as China’s most influential economist.