Book
Why Bitcoin Had to Exist
The story of broken money
In short
Why Bitcoin Had to Exist explains, in plain English, why the money in your pocket keeps losing value and why Bitcoin was created as a response. It starts with inflation, bailouts and the 2008 crisis, and only then gets to Bitcoin. It needs no technical background and gives no trading tips.
What the book argues
Have you noticed that however hard you work, life keeps getting more expensive? That savers are pushed into the stock market or overpriced property just to keep up? We have been told this is normal. The book argues it isn’t: it is the predictable result of money that can be created without limit.
Bitcoin only makes sense once you see that problem clearly. That is why the book spends its first half on money itself, from inflation as an invisible tax to governments freezing accounts and bailing out banks, and its second half on why a fixed-supply, decentralised money had to be invented.
Key ideas
The broken money problem
How inflation silently erodes your purchasing power every year, and why the system is designed that way.
When governments control your money
Frozen accounts, capital controls and bank bailouts paid for with savers’ money.
The 2008 crisis that started it all
The crash that broke the system’s credibility and planted the seed for Bitcoin.
Why Bitcoin is different
What separates Bitcoin from other cryptocurrencies: fixed supply, decentralisation and mathematical scarcity.
Bitcoin and human rights
How people in Afghanistan, Venezuela, Nigeria and beyond already use Bitcoin as a tool for financial sovereignty.
Why everything makes Bitcoin stronger
How every ban, crash and attack has left the network more resilient and its community more committed.
The chapters
- The Money in Your Pocket Is Broken
- The Invisible Tax: How Inflation Steals Your Future
- When Your Government Controls Your Money
- The 2008 Financial Crisis: The Real Story
- Why Gold Couldn’t Save Us
- What Would Money Look Like If We Could Start Over?
- Why Bitcoin Had to Be Decentralized
- Bitcoin vs Other Cryptocurrencies
- Why Bitcoin Is More Than Money
- Why Everything That Should Hurt Bitcoin Makes It Stronger
- What You Should Do With This Information
Who it’s for
Everyday savers and workers
Anyone who has noticed life getting more expensive and wants to understand why.
Curious sceptics
People who have heard of Bitcoin but never understood why it matters, or dismissed it as a scam.
Investors and entrepreneurs
Readers who want the fundamentals before making any decision, beyond hype and headlines.
Students and lifelong learners
Anyone in finance, economics or technology who wants an honest explanation of how money works.
Get the book
Available on Amazon in Kindle, paperback and hardcover.
Questions
Do I need to understand technology to read it?
No. The book was written for readers with no technical background. It explains money first and Bitcoin second, without code.
Does the book tell me to buy Bitcoin?
No. It explains why Bitcoin exists and how it differs from ordinary money and other cryptocurrencies. It gives no trading tips or investment advice.
Is it available in Spanish?
Yes. The Spanish edition is Por Qué Existe Bitcoin: La historia del dinero roto, also on Amazon.
What formats are available?
Kindle, paperback and hardcover, on Amazon.
More books
Guides
Borja Burguillos
Borja writes for people who want to understand money without the jargon. Born in Madrid and based in Dubai since 2012, he has advised companies on people and pay, built tech startups, and co-chairs the People & Organisation Committee at the Middle East Stablecoin Association.
WorldatWork Total Rewards and CAIA certified, CFA Investment Foundations, executive programmes at Wharton and IE Business School.