The then 28-year-old Florida-based programmer posted a pizza order on the Bitcoin Talk forum on 22 May 2010.
He wanted pizza delivery, "something I don't have to order or prepare myself, it's like ordering a 'breakfast plate' at a hotel, they just bring you something to eat and you're happy!
Pizza sets the stage for bitcoin revolution
Hanyecz offered 10,000 bitcoins (BTC) to the person who would bring him the pizzas.
"I will pay 10,000 bitcoins for a couple of pizzas... like 2 large pizzas, so I have some money left over for the next day. I like to eat the leftover pizza to nibble on later," he said.
"You can make the pizza yourself and bring it to my house, or you can order it for me from a delivery place, but my goal is to have the food delivered in exchange for bitcoins..."
Californian student Jeremy Sturdivant, then 19, took up the offer and brought Hanyecz two large Papa John's pizzas in exchange for 10,000 bitcoins.
The deal, which has since become legendary as Bitcoin Pizza Day, gained notoriety over time because 10,000 BTC, which was worth about $41 at the time, is now worth $700 million at current prices.
More importantly, Pizza Day marked the first time that bitcoin, first mined on 3 January 2009 by its pseudonymous founder Satoshi Nakamoto, was used in a commercial transaction. The transaction gave birth to an industry that is now worth $2.7 trillion.
The Bitget crypto exchange is working with NounsDAO, Unlock Protocol, Stand with Crypto, OwnTheDoge, World Pizza Champions and others to organise a global pizza party in 150 cities around the world.
Meanwhile, Binance, the largest cryptocurrency exchange, is engaging and educating people on Bitcoin Pizza Day, with events taking place simultaneously in 16 countries between 17 and 22 May.
Bitget CEO Gracy Chen told Cryptopolitan that Pizza Day is a milestone in the evolution of bitcoin, as it embodies proof of concept, increased publicity and cultural influence for the cryptocurrency.
"This seemingly simple transaction had deep significance," Chen said.
"Hanyecz's pizza purchase demonstrated that bitcoin can be used to buy real goods and services, and validated the idea of a decentralised digital currency."
