According to CryptoPotato, the Bitcoin network is currently experiencing a backlog of unconfirmed transactions, with the average confirmation time exceeding 10.4 minutes. Mempool reports that there are around 560,000 transactions waiting to be confirmed on the Bitcoin protocol, with memory usage surging past 300 MB to 1GB and transaction fees spiking to 20 satoshis per virtual byte (sat/vB) at some point.
Crypto expert Colin Wu and on-chain analysts suggest that the current congestion on the Bitcoin network could be related to the fear of missing out (FOMO) caused by the recent sats minting frenzy, which has resulted in a backlog of unconfirmed transactions. The surge in sats minting is due to the ongoing search for special satoshis, the smallest unit of bitcoin, named after its pseudonymous creator Satoshi Nakamoto. Special satoshis are currently highly sought after, with market participants on the lookout for over two months.
Bitcoin Ordinals protocol creator Casey Rodarmor proposed a method for identifying special satoshis and categorizing them into Common, Uncommon, Rare, Epic, Legendary, and Mythic. The technique, called the “Rodarmor Rarity Index,” uses natural pre-programmed events in the Bitcoin network, such as blocks and difficulty adjustments, to classify the sats. While there are currently no benefits to holding rare sats, Rodarmor believes they may be valuable because of where and when they appear on the Bitcoin network.
The current number of unconfirmed transactions on Bitcoin is not a cause for alarm, as the network has experienced congestion in several previous cases. In May, there were hundreds of thousands of transactions waiting to be confirmed on the protocol, sparking concerns about a possible DDoS attack by BTC senders attaching BRC-20 ordinals scripts. However, the speculation proved unfounded after the network jam cleared within a few days. The current transaction backlog has not significantly impacted the price of BTC, which was trading at $25,700 at the time of writing with little upward and downward movement.
