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The Bitcoin Big Bang

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Bitcoin mendapatkan reputasi buruk di masyarakat ketika dihubungkan dengan lingkaran pasar gelap, tetapi teknologi di balik Bitcoin sendiri membuatnya menjadi lebih menarik dibandingkan mata uang lainnya yang biasa-biasa saja. Buku “The Bitcoin Big Bang” memberikan pemahaman mengenai Bitcoin dari perspektif yang lebih kompleks dibandingkan buku-buku sebelumnya.
Brian Kelly, seorang spesialis investasi mata uang dengan pengalaman lebih dari 20 tahun, melakukan penelitian secara luas mengenai revolusi Bitcoin dan menemukan sebuah potensi untuk menyebarkan perubahan sosial. Pemahaman mengenai bagaimana Bitcoin mengubah masa depan finansial, dan bahkan sifat dasar dari internet itu sendiri, adalah sebuah keharusan bagi siap apun yang tertarik atau bersiap untuk melakukan investasi di platform trading baru.

264 pages, Paperback

First published November 3, 2014

26 people are currently reading
102 people want to read

About the author

Brian Kelly

311 books11 followers

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Displaying 1 - 17 of 17 reviews
Profile Image for Steve Altes.
Author 3 books11 followers
June 29, 2017
Trader and CNBC-TV "Fast Money" regular Brian Kelly brings much-needed clarity of thought to the fascinating world of Bitcoin and other cryptocurrencies. He writes with an easy, engaging style, whether he is explaining cryptography, blockchains, or monetary policy. His experimental foray into creating his own altcoin reminds me of the immersion journalism of A.J. Jacobs and only adds to his credibility and insight into this ascendant field. There is no substitute for first-hand experience.

Brian serves as a level-headed and knowledgeable field guide to an exotic new world polarized by extreme opinions at both ends of the spectrum -- from head-in-the-sand skepticism to wild-eyed hype.

I'll admit... I'm enamored with the possibilities for Bitcoin and its altcoin cousins. The more I learn about blockchain technology the more I can envision it impacting, if not significantly transforming, diverse swaths of our world, including real estate, banking, insurance, venture capital, gambling, supply chains, internet of things, identity verification, and voting.

After finishing Bitcoin Big Bang, I was reminded of Amara's law, which says, "We tend to overestimate the effect of a technology in the short run and underestimate the effect in the long run." That could well apply to the blockchain. In the long run, "check it on the blockchain" could be as common an expression as "google it."

Whether you are considering investing in crypto or just want to stay current with the latest developments in finance and technology, Bitcoin Big Bang is the definitive guide to understanding the origins and potential of this emerging disruptive technology.
Profile Image for Hasta Fu.
123 reviews2 followers
August 13, 2023
"The Bitcoin Big Bang: How Alternative Currencies Are About to Change the World" is a book written by Brian Kelly that goes beyond Bitcoin 101 to explain how this transformative technology is about to change the world. There was one paradox that remains unsolved for several decades until our computing power has come to a certain level just this century.

The book is a guide to navigating the uncharted territory of digital currency and is essential when one considers the emotional and technical confounding subject of digital currencies. We only knew that block chain is used in bitcoin but there are also some other application of this technology, and the main advantage of this is the elimination of intermediary.

According to a review on Amazon, the book is fantastic to get you up to speed on the digital currency/blockchain revolution that has already arrived. He also created Nautilus coin, a cryptocurrency which differs from bitcoin in terms of who has the power to authorize transactions. The bounty is not given to miners, but to the holder of the coin, which encourages the holder to use his calculations power and minimize the effect of miners from taking control of the coin.

The author, Brian Kelly, makes the subject matter easy to understand and provides a lot of useful information. However he also stated that technology cannot overcome humans greed, no matter how good the encryption or validation it all goes back to the persons who are running the instrument.

A lot of new cryptocurrency has emerged and has been traded in various exchanges and due to the open source nature of the cryptocurrency the community may be able to work together to improve the technology overtime.

Overall, "The Bitcoin Big Bang" by Brian Kelly seems to be a well-written and informative book that provides a comprehensive guide to navigating the world of digital currency. It is recommended for anyone looking to learn more about this transformative technology.
Profile Image for Cullen Haynes.
319 reviews11 followers
February 10, 2018
“The one thing that’s missing, but that will soon be developed, is a reliable e-cash, a method whereby on the Internet you can transfer funds from A to B without A knowing B or B knowing A” - Milton Friedman, Nobel Laureate and Economist, 1999

Friedman’s prophetic statement is one which history has rendered true through the advent of bitcoin and it’s crypto siblings.

Kelly’s book strikes a nice balance of beginner to advanced content on this very polarising global phenomenon. For those whose contention is this digital asset class holds no value, let me leave you with these immortal words...

“All money is a matter of belief” - Adam Smith
Profile Image for Gabriel Alborta.
9 reviews1 follower
May 31, 2018
Warning!!! Once you read this book you will fully introduce yourself in cryptocurrencies and your brain will start to think about them non-stop almost like a brain virus. Also, you will invest every dime you have in crypto even if you work at burger king. But don't get me wrong this is a must for everyone that is serious about their future and an excellent book not only for first timers in the bitcoin community but overall great for anyone that is still trying to understand cryptocurrencies and the technology behind them.
Profile Image for Jasper.
2 reviews
May 28, 2019
I recommend this book for everyone who is interested in getting into cryptocurrencies. I would skip the book if you have a good understanding of blockchain, bitcoin or crypto's in general. It does not go in depth enough to be valuable.

Bitcoin started out having many different names. It is a scam, fad, schema, Tulipmania 2.0 and many others. This book is here to debunk these terms. It is here to explain to the reader what bitcoin and the crypto revolution has to offer.

A personal journey
The book starts rather light by going back into time with Brian (the author) to the early days of bitcoin. Its a story on how he got himself involved in the bitcoin world.

Later it delves deeper into the fundamental problems that are solved by using blockchain technology.
I must give credit to the author to explain these complex topics with fun and understandable examples.

Bitcoin or Crypto?
I had the feeling the author misused bitcoin in some cases that instead he should use the term blockchain or cryptocurrency.
In hindsight, this is on purpose because somewhere halfway the book other cryptos like Litecoin are introduced.
An interesting way to introduce the concept without overwhelming the reader in the beginning.

If you are quite knowledgeable about the topic don't freak out if you have these same misconceptions. Knowing that the book was written in 2014 many terms were different as of today.

Nautuliscoin
Skip this chapter, somewhere halfway the book, Brian introduces you to a different cryptocurrency called Nautuliscoin. To be honest, when I read it I never heard of it before.
So it was not so a good idea of the author to use this coin as an example. He would have done a lot better if he stuck with using bitcoin throughout the book.

There was somewhat an interesting part of this chapter to see how he explained the way of thinking of creating a cryptocurrency. The project went through many phases and possible changes. It was interesting to read it from a creators perspective to keep the project relevant in ever-changing crypto space.
As mentioned before using bitcoin to tell this story would make this chapter more relevant as of today.

A good ending
The book does end strong with branching from bitcoin and introducing the different project on the blockchain like Ethereum. It goes more in depth on how blockchain technology could change how the economic system works. It has the potential to be a social and economic revolution to bring human development to the next level.

Like it?
I do have a more in depth review on my blog. Reading Ocelot - The Bitcoin Big Bang. It goes a bit more in depth in the content as well as personal opinions about crypto.
Profile Image for Ali Akbar Zaidi.
117 reviews5 followers
July 17, 2025
Brian kelly is a investment manager and CNBC reporter. Your regular wallstreet and investment guru who is taking a jab at digital currencies with this book. As I am beginning to understand and invest in crypto currencies, it seemed like a good idea to get to know the basics. And this book does a really good job at it. Brian has a knack of breaking down complex software and crypto terminologies for the everyday day. Enjoyable and informative, this book gave me exactly what I was looking for.

The writer traces the history of crypto currencies, which are laid in the events of 2008 financial crisis. Bad Government decisions and banking greed lead to losses worth billions and people who had nothing to do with it, lost alot. At that point, a revolution started which was as big as the internet itself. A man named Satoshi Nakamoto began a software algo based currency called bitcoin that had multiple nodes of maintenance.

Bitcoin could only be mined through solving mathematical equations by computers and the information of crypto points or crypto currencies was held at each node, each owner in the decentralized network. This was a contrast to the FIAT currency where the Govt issues notes at its will and becomes a central point of failure. For bitcoin to fail, the entire internet and every user will have to fail. This is the bitcoin big bang. A currency which is not controlled by any bank, government or central authority but by its users and its algorhtym.

The medici family in italy came up with the double entry ledger system in 1300s which exists even today. The bank of England was made by Kind William to fight the french and raise money for the war through the people. Digital currency changes all that. Sending and receiving information and money without costs. As bitcoin gains value and becomes a MEDIUM OF EXCHANGE and STORE OF VALUE. Its value will stabilize as more and more entities accept it as currency. It is the future and here to stay.

Brian also mentions that when almonds are short in the market, people will buy dates or peanuts, those are your Alt-coins. Etherium, Solana and XRP are stable coins. Then there are new projects and new companies in the digital world that are DAOs or simply Decentralized Autonomous Organizations. The emphasis is on the word Decentralized.

Brian also discusses role of Government, the threat to wall-street and Visa/master card, but they are already hedging and becoming part of the reserve currency instead of opposing it. The time is nigh. The block-chains are here to stay.

The writer does well in explaining technical terms like satoshi being the smallest units, hot wallets are storage of crypto online and cold wallets are crypto storage offline.

Overall, a good book that does the job and paves the way for more complex content to be consumed and practiced.
Profile Image for Ron.
121 reviews
May 11, 2018
This book did a pretty good job of explaining what cryptocurrencies are, how they work, and why you can trust them. It takes a "for dummies" sort of approach by likening different aspects of crypto to familiar objects. Some accuracy is lost in the translation, but its a forgivable degree.

I do have two big qualms about the book though. First, the author spends two chapters talking about a coin he created. This comes off as self-serving and illustrates how someone could make money by creating nothing in particular and cashing in on the hype, not unlike dot-com companies nearly twenty years ago.

My second qualm is toward the end of the book as Kelly continues to hype the benefits of blockchain technology. They are real and several, but Kelly keeps stretching the premise, acting as if not-for-profit organizations are an invention of the crypto economy. What is a credit union but a member-owned lending club?
Profile Image for Travis.
2,924 reviews49 followers
November 29, 2019
An interesting book on digital currency. While it mostly deals with bitcoin, it mentions several other digital currencies as well, including one the author created, that did not last to the current day. Nautaliscoin is no longer a thing, so ignoring the chapter completely devoted to it in the book would be time well spent not reading about a digital coin that (as far as I can tell) did not perform it's intended goal.
However, minus this issue, the book is otherwise well done, and while it primarily concentrates on the financial side of digital coins, it is packed with many things that would serve to help the digital coin info seeker along the trail towards understanding of this technology, and should not be dismissed just because of a failed coin implemented by it's author.
Profile Image for Muhammad Muhsin.
54 reviews20 followers
December 31, 2020
Pengantar yang mudah untuk memahami Bitcoin, juga Crypto & Blockchain secara umum. Khas penulis Amrik, penulis juga menulisnya dengan penuh humor dan berdasarkan pengalaman sendiri, sehingga menarik untuk diikuti dari awal hingga akhir.

Elex Media cukup bagus dalam menerjemahkan buku ini. Saya cukup terhibur dan banyak dapat wawasan ketika selesai membacanya. 😇
Profile Image for Carlton Moore.
355 reviews2 followers
June 7, 2017
How does that song go? "Well if you don't know, now you know. . . "
Profile Image for Mike Bayly.
20 reviews3 followers
February 16, 2018
Struggled to get through, didn't set itself apart from other standard bitcoin/crypto titles
Profile Image for Dhanya Jothimani.
341 reviews35 followers
December 29, 2018
Starting point for those who are not familiar with bitcoin. Few points are repetitive. Few concepts deserve much better explanation and few more details.
Profile Image for Jeff.
122 reviews
January 28, 2018
Must read for 2018. The book is a good primer on various topics like cryptocurrencies as an asset class as well as blockchain technology as well as how to actually invest in blockchain and Bitcoin.
-Digital currencies have become negatively corollary to stocks and bonds which makes them attractive asset class
Profile Image for Kamran.
80 reviews5 followers
April 16, 2022
An average read that explains some common concepts relating to blockchain and Bitcoin. To me, the author spends far too much time on superficial connections and his arguments do not seem compelling.
Profile Image for Brendan Keene .
27 reviews1 follower
June 13, 2018
Written by Brian Kelly a CNBC anchor and long-time currency/foreign exchange investor.

Kelly spends the entire book arguing that Bitcoin's main appeals to society are bigger than the actual currency itself. Bitcoin represents a systematic change in our economy and our banking system in the western world. Bitcoin allows transactions to be unregulated and take place without a middleman (a bank).

He continues to argue that through Blockchain technology, Alt. Currencies are establishing trust among unrelated parties over a network that can be trusted. That this technology can be a rebirth of capitalism and democracy. He states never before have we been able to have such faith in a system.

I would argue that Kelly is much to optimistic about Bitcoin and other Alt. coins. A long fight will occur before these changes will take place. And Bitcoin itself does have it's faults. Kelly only briefly points these cons out.

Overall, a great book for someone looking to learn the terms, and origins of Bitcoin. Not to stuffy of a read, and as long as you realize Kelly is a bit biased you'll be alright.
105 reviews8 followers
November 3, 2015
One of the more annoying books trying to explain what is meant to be "hard" due to its repetitive, sometimes condescending, didactic tone. If this is the only book available to you on the subject, try to skim.
Displaying 1 - 17 of 17 reviews

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