Seventeen years after the release of the Bitcoin (BTC) whitepaper, the world’s first decentralized currency continues to be a focal point in global discourse. On this significant anniversary, US Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent took the opportunity to underscore Bitcoin’s enduring reliability and success, suggesting that Senate Democrats could derive valuable lessons from its consistent performance.
What Senate Democrats Could Learn From Bitcoin
In a post on X on October 31, Bessent voiced criticism aimed at Senate Democrats, highlighting that Bitcoin’s ability to navigate through global crises and economic fluctuations over the past sixteen years showcases a resilience that could be emulated. As a member of the Republican party, his remarks come amidst ongoing clashes between the two major political parties over federal budget matters, which have contributed to the current government shutdown.
Remarkably, October 31 is also the anniversary of Bitcoin’s whitepaper publication, authored by Satoshi Nakamoto. The groundbreaking document outlined a fully digital monetary system designed to operate without intermediaries or central authorities. The mining of the first Bitcoin block in 2009 marked the official launch of the network, establishing a framework that has gained international recognition across numerous sectors.
The journey of Bitcoin since its inception has been nothing short of extraordinary, with industry leaders frequently referring to it as a “store of value” and “digital gold.” Bessent has also been a vocal proponent of the rapid evolution within the digital asset landscape. Following President Trump’s signing of the GENIUS Act in July, he remarked that stablecoins might prove to be crucial for bolstering the US dollar.
A month later, he hinted on X that Bitcoin seized by the Federal Government could become part of a Strategic Bitcoin Reserve, as outlined in the President’s March Executive Order. He elaborated that the US Treasury is actively seeking budget-neutral methods to acquire more Bitcoin, thereby enhancing America’s foothold in the digital asset arena.
BTC Records 99.9% Uptime Since Launch
Recent analytics have highlighted Bitcoin’s impressive network performance throughout its sixteen-year lifespan. Notably, crypto developer Abhinav reported that the blockchain has maintained a remarkable 99.9% uptime since it began, having experienced merely two brief outages.
Supporters have underscored this technical robustness as proof of BTC’s reliability and its foundational role in decentralized technology. Additionally, recent on-chain data indicates that Bitcoin’s network hash rate, a key indicator of computational capacity, has recently surged to an all-time high of approximately 1.204 ZH/s.
Its current hash rate of 1.202 ZH/s represents a 12.3% increase from the prior day and a significant 79% rise compared to this time last year. Over its 16-year history, BTC has also undergone four halving events and achieved a market capitalization exceeding $2.1 trillion. On the day of its anniversary, Bitcoin traded above $110,000, having previously hit an all-time high of over $126,000 in October.
