5. Risks

Transactions are free or low-cost (if we take into account the commission added to transactions). The speed of transfers is very satisfactory, since sending any amount irreversibly from one point on the globe to another will take (a) a few seconds, (b) about ten minutes, or (c) an hour, depending on the level of confirmation desired.

However, the number of transactions that the Bitcoin network can execute is limited to around 5 or 10 transactions per second, which is very low compared to the credit card network (2,000 transactions per second or more), making it inconceivable at present that it could compete with it.

Several solutions are being considered and gradually implemented to increase the network's capacity. One example is the Lightning Network protocol, which is a layer above the Bitcoin network. It does not directly affect the functioning...