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A guided story, from the first problem to the next question

Understand how blockchain got here.

Follow the ideas, experiments and failures that connect digital money to the systems being built today. Learn the story at your own level.

Start the storyFind my learning level

START WITH ONE QUESTION

If a digital file can be copied, how can digital money be spent only once?

That question leads to a shared ledger. The next ones lead to programmable rules, markets and new trade-offs.

Try the shared-ledger example

Follow the chapters

An editorial reading map. These periods overlap; the dates describe the story, not when our articles were published.

012008–2013Agreeing on digital money022014–2017Making shared rules programmable032018–2020Building markets and lending042021–2022Testing promises through failures052023–todayCost, usability and outside rights06Possible futuresConditions, evidence and open questions

Choose how deeply to go

Beginner

Everyday examples. Explain the idea in your own words.

Start with the foundations

Intermediate

Mechanisms and worked examples. Follow how the result changes.

Understand how it works

Advanced

Primary sources and assumptions. Test the claims and trade-offs.

Read the evidence closely

A connected five-part learning route

The DeFi story: markets, incentives and failures

Read from liquidity pools to lending, Sushi, the 2021 incident evidence and the lessons after FTX.

Explore the DeFi route

Browse all topics and levels · Practice with the exit-cost calculator

Latest articles and tools

Hashcash, b-money and Bitcoin: How the Ideas Fit Together

History · Intermediate · A companion to Lesson 1 Historical documents: 1997–2008 · Sources reviewed: October 20, 2026 (UTC) A useful history of Bit…

Three Blockchain Futures and the Evidence That Would Change Them

The Blockchain Story · Lesson 12 of 12 · Intermediate Historical focus: An evaluation framework for the years ahead Published and sources reviewed: O…

The Merge: What Changed and What Did Not

The Blockchain Story · Lesson 9 of 12 · Intermediate Historical focus: 2020–2023 Published and sources reviewed: October 20, 2026 (UTC). Event dates …

Two Different Failures: Terra’s Reflexivity and FTX’s Custody

The Blockchain Story · Lesson 8 of 12 · Beginner Historical focus: 2022, with dated 2024 legal records Published and sources reviewed: October 20, 20…

Tokens and the ICO Era: Code, Claims and Incentives

The Blockchain Story · Lesson 5 of 12 · Beginner Historical focus: 2015–2017 Published and sources reviewed: October 20, 2026 (UTC). Event dates are …

The DAO and the Governance Question

The Blockchain Story · Lesson 4 of 12 · Beginner Historical focus: 2016 Published and sources reviewed: October 20, 2026 (UTC). Event dates are stated separately below. Open the complete story and re…

From Payments to Programs: Why Ethereum Was Built

The Blockchain Story · Lesson 3 of 12 · Beginner Historical focus: 2013–2015 Published and sources reviewed: October 20, 2026 (UTC). Event dates are …
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