The reason is that it's perceived as anonymous is that there is no ceremony involved with making a bitcoin 'bank account', that means that you can do it without identifying yourself. You can make a Bitcoin address even without connecting to the internet, you can make a private key that fits to an address, and not let anyone know that you have it.
Now you have an anonymous account, that you can send money to, but everything that happens to that money is public.
Order a Pizza delivered to your door, paid with bitcoin? Gone anonymity.
Are you the one person that buys 3 apples every tuesday at a particular food stand paid with bitcoin? Gone anonymity.
Relevant to this example: Every entity that exchanges Bitcoin for Dollars or Euros is legally required (anti-money laundering laws) to identify you. In Canada they apparently even need your palm print.
The reason is that it's perceived as anonymous is that there is no ceremony involved with making a bitcoin 'bank account', that means that you can do it without identifying yourself. You can make a Bitcoin address even without connecting to the internet, you can make a private key that fits to an address, and not let anyone know that you have it.
Now you have an anonymous account, that you can send money to, but everything that happens to that money is public.
Order a Pizza delivered to your door, paid with bitcoin? Gone anonymity. Are you the one person that buys 3 apples every tuesday at a particular food stand paid with bitcoin? Gone anonymity.
Relevant to this example: Every entity that exchanges Bitcoin for Dollars or Euros is legally required (anti-money laundering laws) to identify you. In Canada they apparently even need your palm print.