Genesis Block

The Genesis block marks the very beginning of the Bitcoin blockchain. On January 3, 2009, Bitcoin’s creator, Satoshi Nakamoto, mined this first block and embedded a message in it: “Chancellor on brink of second bailout for banks,” a newspaper headline from that day. This message highlights Bitcoin’s aim to offer an alternative to traditional, centralized financial systems.

Unlike all other blocks, the Genesis block has no reference to a previous block since it stands at the start of the chain—its “previous hash” field is empty. Additionally, while the block created 50 bitcoins in its first transaction, these coins cannot be spent; they serve only as a historic marker. The Genesis block remains a foundation of both Bitcoin’s technology and its principles.