Virtual billions
Subtitle: the genius, the drug lord, and the Ivy League twins behind the rise of Bitcoin
By: Eric Geissinger
Publisher: Prometheus Books
Published: 2016
Language: eng
Number of pages: 319
ISBN-13: 9781633881440
Subjects: Electronic commerce; Electronic funds transfers; Bitcoin; History
Description: "Bitcoin, the digital currency, was introduced in 2009 with little fanfare; five years later, shocking the world, it was worth $14 billion. This book explores the cyber currency by focusing on the remarkable stories and intriguing personalities of those responsible for its sudden success: Satoshi Nakamoto, the reclusive and anonymous genius who created Bitcoin; Ross Ulbricht, aka the Dread Pirate Roberts, administrator of the largest and most successful Dark Web drug superstore, using Bitcoin to fuel online sale of drugs, hacking services, counterfeit money, and assassinations; and Cameron and Tyler Winklevoss, Harvard graduates, successful litigants vs. Facebook, world-class Olympic rowers, and Bitcoin entrepreneurs who own 1 percent of all bitcoins in existence. Equal parts The Social Network, Sherlock Holmes, and Breaking Bad, this absorbing narrative tells the stories of the reclusive genius who waged a one-man war against the global banking system (and he's winning); the quiet and affable computer geek who, until his arrest, profited handsomely from Silk Road, his online drug superstore; and the multitalented Harvard twins, who made a fortune from an intellectual-property suit against Mark Zuckerberg, and now are the chief promoters of Bitcoin as "the next big thing." Bitcoin has introduced us to coke-fueled coding gurus, anger-crazed hitmen-hiring millionaires, and canny "Bitcoin miners" avidly adding processing power to their chilly Icelandic server farms to generate millions of dollars every month. Absurd and almost unbelievable stories abound, and sweep the reader along through the living and breathing, passionate and paranoid insiders who made it all happen"--

"A colorful narrative that brings to life the extraordinary personalities behind Bitcoin, showing the enormous potential of this online currency for good and bad"--
Notes: Includes bibliographical references (pages 279-314) and index.
Table of contents: title: Introduction: Spending symbols and buying potatoes; title: Satoshi Nakamoto: what he invented; title: Satoshi Nakamoto: how Bitcoin works; title: Satoshi Nakamoto: a rocket-powered launch; title: Ross Ulbricht:  into the dark; title: Ross Ulbricht: the rise and fall of Silk Road; title: The Winklevoss twins:  born on third base, hit a double; title: The Winklevoss twins: the fog of success; title: Conclusion: Incremental progress.