Token Description & Project Background

Bitcoin is the world's first cryptocurrency. It has a finite and maximum supply of 21 million BTC tokens.

Conceptually, Bitcoin stems from several decades of efforts to use cryptography as a basis for digital money. In the 13 years since its creation in 2009, Bitcoin has become a recognized-around-the-world asset class.

In early January 2008, some unknown person or persons using the pseudonym Satoshi Nakamoto published a white paper, Bitcoin: A Peer-to-Peer Electronic Cash System, detailing a blockchain-based network for sending and receiving transactions in a permissionless, trustless manner, beyond the oversight of any central authority.

Roughly one year after the release of the research paper, the network launched with the mining (by Satoshi Nakamoto) of rewards block #0, also known as the "genesis block," comprising 50 BTCs.

Maintaining the blockchain falls on a global network of communicating nodes. Becoming a Bitcoin miner requires specialized hardware and mining software that picks up transactions broadcast through the peer-to-peer network.

The founder(s) of Bitcoin remain anonymous.

In 2018, William Hinman of the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission stated that Bitcoin (BTC) was not a security.

Risks of BTC

Like an investment in other crypto assets, there are some general risks to investing in BTC. These include:  (i) volatility risk and liquidity risk, (ii) short history risk, (iii) demand risk, (iv) forking risk, (v) code defects, (vi) regulatory risk, (vii) electronic trading risk, and (viii) cyber security risk. For additional information of these and other general risks associated with crypto assets and Uphold’s platform, please refer to the Risks Specific to Holding Digital Assets statement.

In addition to these general risks, an investment in BTC is subject to the following specific risks:

• Any potential success associated with BTC depends on Bitcoin’s rate of adoption.

We emphasize that this Crypto Asset Statement is not an exhaustive description or summary of all risks associated with BTC . Investors should conduct their own research and perform their own assessment before trading any crypto asset to determine the appropriate level of risk for their personal circumstances.

The BTC community and BTC miners are not under any legal or regulatory obligation to disclose material information to the public regarding its activities. Holders of BTC have no recourse to the BTC community, its miners, or Uphold if BTC declines in value for any reason.

Changes to applicable law may adversely affect the use, transfer, exchange, or value of any of your crypto assets, and such changes may be sudden and without notice.

Uphold’s Evaluation Process

Prior to listing BTC on the Uphold Platform, Uphold performed due diligence on BTC and determined that BTC is unlikely to be a security or derivative under relevant securities legislation. Uphold’s analysis including reviewing publicly available information on the following: 

• The creation, governance, usage, and design of BTC, including ensuring the source code is open-source, audited and peer reviewed, security, and roadmap for growth in the developer community. 
• The supply, demand, maturity, utility, and liquidity of BTC.
• Any marketing materials put forward by the BTC social team including on, Twitter, Medium blog, LinkedIn posts, Discord and Telegram channels.
• Material technical risks associated with BTC, including any code defects, security breaches and other threats concerning BTC and its supporting blockchain (such as the susceptibility to hacking and impact of forking), or the practices and protocols that apply to them.
• Legal and regulatory risks associated with BTC, including any pending, potential, or prior civil, regulatory, criminal, or enforcement action relating to the issuance, distribution, or use of BTC. 

General

Uphold has prepared this Crypto Asset Statement based on publicly available information. Although Uphold has taken steps to obtain information from apparently reliable sources, information contained in this Crypto Asset Statement may be inaccurate, incomplete or out-of-date. This overview is a starting point for you to perform your own research prior to investing in a crypto asset.

Uphold users should read the Risks Specific To Holding Digital Assets statement for additional discussion of general risks associated with crypto assets made available through the Uphold platform.  

Canadian residents, please note that Uphold has filed an application for registration in certain Canadian jurisdictions but has not yet obtained registration. Until such time as Uphold obtains registration, Uphold has agreed to abide by the terms of an undertaking available at the following link. Please also review the Uphold Canada – Crypto Risk Statement for additional discussion of general risks associated with the crypto assets made available through Uphold Platform. Please be aware that statutory rights of action for damages or rescission in section 130.1 of the Securities Act (Ontario) and, if applicable, similar statutory rights under securities legislation in the other provinces and territories of Canada do not apply in respect of this Crypto Asset Statement or other disclosures on the Uphold website and Risks Specific To Holding Digital Assets statement. 

Last updated on June 21, 2023.