It is Bitcoin Pizza Day again, which lands on May 22 every year.
The day was coined after Laszlo Hanyecz, who in 2010 bought two Papa John’s pizzas using 10,000 bitcoin
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in the first widely known bitcoin transaction to take place.
The price of bitcoin was worth less than a penny in 2010, and the purchase was worth around $41 at the time. But what makes the day notable is that it was the first time a virtual cryptocurrency had been used to purchase an item in the real world.
Over the years, bitcoin enthusiasts have been trying to expand use cases of the crypto and the Bitcoin blockchain. They touted bitcoin as a hedge against the existing monetary system and a potential “safe haven.” Developers have also recently enabled issuance of non-fungible tokens and meme tokens on the Bitcoin network.
Today, one bitcoin is worth slightly below $27,000, according to CoinDesk data, which means that if Hanyecz had kept the bitcoin, instead of using them to buy the pizzas, the coins would be worth almost $270 million.
Bitcoin has rallied more than 60% so far this year, but it is still down more than 60% from an all-time high of $68,990 in November 2021.
Bitcoin’s price peaked in November, 2021.
MarketWatch photo illustration/iStockphoto
Over the years, Hanyecz has been interviewed by media outlets on his purchase, and whether he has any regrets. In a 2018 interview with CoinTelegraph, he said he doesn’t regret it, and that “it is great” that he got to be a “part of the early history of Bitcoin in that way.” His purchase was one of the key moments in what became a controversial and notable cryptocurrency over the next decade.
Over the years, notable figures have shown support, as well as skepticism around the cryptocurrency. Hedge fund billionaire Ray Dalio has consistently questioned why people are more inclined to invest in bitcoin than gold, while Warren Buffett has doubled-down on his views that investing in crypto and bitcoin is nothing but a gamble.
Still, bitcoin’s proponents are equally as vocal. Michael Saylor, CEO and co-founder of MicroStrategy, has often publicly challenged bitcoin’s biggest critics, including Charlie Munger, saying that they haven’t taken the time to study it.
Over the past few years, there have been more discussions around regulating cryptocurrencies, with Gary Gensler calling bitcoin a commodity several times.