Hint: You'd be a millionaire.
Bitcoin has had quite the year so far in 2017, with the price up by 320% since Jan. 1. However, this type of move pales in comparison with the digital currency's climb in its early years. In fact, you might be shocked to discover just how much a few dollars' worth of bitcoin in the early days would be worth today.
The price history of bitcoin
Bitcoinbegan trading in 2010, as the first bitcoin exchange opened in March 2010 with a per-coin value of $0.003. The first real-world transaction took place in May 2010, when 10,000 bitcoins were exchanged for two pizzas in Jacksonville, Florida. Since that time, the price of bitcoin has been on quite the roller-coaster ride.
Image source: Getty Images.
- The first spike in the price of bitcoin occurred in July 2010, when the price jumped tenfold in a five-day period, from $0.008 to $0.08.
- Bitcoin first grew in value to $1.00 in early 2011.
- The first bitcoin "bubble" saw prices jump as high as $31 in July 2011, before crashing to a low of $2 later in the year.
- From December 2011 through April 2013, bitcoin experienced a major price surge, from $2 to a high of $266, before stabilizing in the $130 range.
- Bitcoin spiked once again in November 2013, topping out at $1,242.
- From December 2013 through much of 2014, the price of bitcoin stayed between $340 and $1,000.
- Bitcoin fell to a low of about $200 in March 2015, before beginning a long bull run, which is still continuing.
- On Aug. 1, 2017, bitcoin split into two digital currencies, bitcoin and "bitcoin cash." If you owned one bitcoin before the split, you owned one of each afterward.
- In early September 2017, bitcoin reached $5,000 for the first time. As I write in September 2017, one bitcoin is worth just over $3,722 and one "bitcoin cash" is worth about $445.
$10 worth of bitcoin in 2010
To illustrate just how impressive this rally has been, let's say you had the foresight (or good luck) to purchase $10 worth of bitcoin at the time the first bitcoin exchange opened in March 2010. Based on the $0.003 per-coin price at the time, your $10 would have purchased 3,333 bitcoins.
Now, using the $3,722 current value of a bitcoin and the $445 value of one bitcoin cash, your original investment would be worth a total of nearly $13.9 million. That translates to a 655% annualized gain over a roughly seven-year period.
What's more, keep in mind that someone paid 10,000 bitcoin, or three times this amount, for just two pizzas earlier that same year.
Where could bitcoin be heading
It's difficult to say where bitcoin could be headed, just because there are so many conflicting viewpoints from industry experts, as well as lots of variables that could move the price in one direction or another. I've written before that a bitcoin value of $1 million could certainly be possible if the right things happen over the coming years, but there's also a solid case to be made that bitcoin is worth significantly less than its current price, or could eventually be worth nothing at all.
One thing I do know is that bitcoin's performance over the next seven years isn't likely to be close to that of the previous seven. After all, if bitcoin continues to grow at a 665% annualized rate for another seven years, it would translate to a price of more than $4.6 billion per bitcoin. Even the most bullish cryptocurrency advocates realize this would be quite impossible.
FAQs
$10 worth of bitcoin in 2010
How much is 1 Bitcoin in dollars in 2010? ›
The closing price for Bitcoin (BTC) in 2010 was $0.30, on December 31, 2010. It was up 506.1% for the year.
How much would I have if I invested $100 in Bitcoin in 2009? ›
If you invested $100, you'd have been able to buy about 1,000 bitcoins. At its all-time high, those 1,000 bitcoins would've been worth more than $48 million, not accounting for compounding and assuming you bought and held the asset the entire time.
What was the value of Bitcoin in 2010? ›
In 2010, bitcoin—the cryptocurrency that had then come into being only a year back—was valued at the average of USD 0.06 or Rs. 2.85. Bitcoin hit a record-high of USD 2,779 yesterday, stunning investors and observers around the world. It has appreciated 150 percent year to date.
What will $1000 of Bitcoin be worth in 2030? ›
If Wood is correct and Bitcoin does reach $3.8 million by 2030, an investment of $1,000 would be worth over $60,000. This would result in a compound annual growth rate (CAGR) of over 100%. Read Next: Bitcoin has jumped another 45% already this year – how much would you need to get started today?
What would $10 in Bitcoin in 2010 be worth today? ›
$10 worth of bitcoin in 2010
Based on the $0.003 per-coin price at the time, your $10 would have purchased 3,333 bitcoins. Now, using the $3,722 current value of a bitcoin and the $445 value of one bitcoin cash, your original investment would be worth a total of nearly $13.9 million.
How much did a Bitcoin cost in May 2010? ›
Prices and value history
| Date | USD : 1 BTC |
|---|
| May 2010 | less than $0.01 |
| Feb 2011 – April 2011 | $1.00 |
| Nov 2013 | $350–$1,242 |
| Apr 2014 | $340–$530 |
23 more rowsIn it, a StockTwits user by the name of Charlie Bilello noted that a $10,000 investment in Bitcoin made in July 2010 would have earned investors a $200 mln return. To be exact, a Bitcoin investor who purchased $10,000 worth of Bitcoin in 2010 would have earned $201.56 mln.
How much would you have if you invested $100 in Bitcoin in 2010? ›
If you invested $100 in Bitcoin in 2010, you'd have $42,800,000 today. Makes you wonder what the next big opportunity will be. What are you the most bullish on over the next decade?
What if you put $100 in Bitcoin in 2010? ›
An initial $100 investment held for a tad over 11 years and four months has gained almost 8,000,000,000% and would now be worth $7,964,042,400. In other words, Forbes would be including you in their annual list of the world's richest people.
Dogecoin ($DOGE)
Spotlight Wire Dogecoin, commonly known by its moniker DOGE, being the world's first meme crypto is the strongest candidate on this list to achieve 1$ valuation. In the 2021 bull market, Dogecoin nearly reached this goal, hitting a high of $0.74376.
How much will Bitcoin be in 2024? ›
Bitcoin Overview
| Year | Minimum Price | Average Price |
|---|
| 2024 | $84,475.55 | $87,676.23 |
| 2025 | $121,440.85 | $124,947.50 |
| 2026 | $166,264.37 | $171,262.87 |
| 2027 | $251,829.81 | $258,680.13 |
8 more rowsIn February of 2011, BTC reached $1.00 for the first time, achieving parity with the U.S. dollar. Months later, the price of BTC reached $10 and then quickly soared to $30 on the Mt. Gox exchange.
How much will 1 Bitcoin be worth in 5 years? ›
We predict that Bitcoin will hold an average price of $60,000 in 2024, thanks to the Halving event, and settle more in 2025 with an average of $65,000. In 2026, we see Bitcoin trading as high as $90,000 by the end of the year. By 2030, we predict that Bitcoin could reach a high of $160,000.
How much will 1 Bitcoin be worth in 2050? ›
By 2040, Bitcoin could surpass $1 million and reach a high point of $1.16 million, which would be a +2,275% increase compared to today's prices. Going further, BTC is expected to break the $1.4 million mark by 2050.
How much will Bitcoin be worth in 2025? ›
Bitcoin (BTC) Price Prediction 2030
| Year | Price |
|---|
| 2024 | $ 60,610.39 |
| 2025 | $ 63,640.91 |
| 2026 | $ 66,822.95 |
| 2027 | $ 70,164.10 |
1 more rowBitcoin was originally worth next to nothing. The transaction that first gave Bitcoin monetary value was in October 2009, when Finnish computer science student Martti Malmi, known online as Sirius, sold 5,050 coins for $5.02, giving each Bitcoin a value of $0.0009 each.
How much was 1 Bitcoin in 2012? ›
The closing price for Bitcoin (BTC) in 2012 was $13.45, on December 31, 2012. It was up 185% for the year.
How much was 1 Bitcoin in 2015? ›
Bitcoin USD (BTC-USD)
| Date | Open | Low |
|---|
| Oct 1, 2015 | 236.00 | 235.62 |
| Sep 30, 2015 | 236.64 | 235.63 |
| Sep 29, 2015 | 239.02 | 235.93 |
| Sep 28, 2015 | 232.84 | 232.47 |
59 more rowsThe closing price for Bitcoin (BTC) in 2016 was $963.74, on December 31, 2016. It was up 123.8% for the year. The latest price is $62,792.02.
