  Bitcoin is the first and the most extensive decentralized electronic
cryptocurrency system that uses blockchain technology. It uses a peer-to-peer
(P2P) network to operate without a central authority and propagate system
information such as transactions or blockchain updates. The communication
between participating nodes is highly relying on the underlying network
infrastructure to facilitate a platform. Understanding the impact of peer
formation strategies, peer list, and delay are vital on understanding node to
node communication. To this aim, we performed an extensive study on the
transaction characteristic of Bitcoin through a Testbed. The analysis shows
that peer selection strategies affect the transactions propagation and
confirmation time. Moreover, the default distance-based peer selection strategy
in Bitcoin performs less when there is high arrival intensity and creates high
number forks.
