All aboard the crypto-coaster

[Parishy]

All aboard the crypto-coaster

The biggest investment story of the past 12 months has been the meteoric rise -- and fall and then rise and then fall and then rise and then fall -- of cryptocurrencies. Of course, the headline act of the group has been bitcoin, the first cryptocurrency to arrive on the scene more than nine years ago. In the past year, the price of bitcoin has rocketed from about $970 to $8,713, where it stands today -- an eightfold increase! Of course, during that time, its price peaked at nearly $20,000!

Because of its rapid rise in price, the asset has attracted lots of attention from both would-be investors and those that are just curious. Yet there still exists a lot of confusion about bitcoin and the blockchain technology behind it. If you are in either one of these camps, here are 10 facts you should know about bitcoin.