Bitcoin’s white paper marked 18 years on October 31. Published by Satoshi Nakamoto in 2008, it proposed a peer-to-peer electronic cash system operating without financial institutions or centralized intermediaries, just weeks after the approval of a $700 billion bailout package for struggling US banks. According to Onramp CEO Michael Tanguma, the Federal Reserve’s balance sheet grew from about $900 billion in September 2008 to $9 trillion in April 2022, before regulators intervened again following the collapse of Silicon Valley Bank in 2023. These measures stabilized financial markets, but inflation and rising wages, rents, and other operating costs are putting small businesses under pressure. Bitcoin’s capped supply of 21 million coins is presented as an alternative to traditional cash reserves, despite its significant volatility and uncertain adoption by businesses.
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