[Halving highlights why Bitcoin needs to upgrade]
As Bitcoin is about to usher in its latest halving event in mid-April this year, mining rewards will be halved. While this is generally seen as a positive event for Bitcoin prices, it means less revenue for miners. Bob Bodily, CEO and co-founder of Bioniq in Provo, Utah, believes that the impact of this halving may be different from previous ones due to recent innovations in the Bitcoin ecosystem and a surge in investment in Bitcoin ETFs. These changes are expected to boost network activity, increase transaction fees, and make up for reduced block rewards.
It is worth noting that emerging NFTs on Bitcoin, such as Ordinals and BRC-20 tokens, have increased network fees, and the upcoming launch of Runes has further strengthened the demand for Bitcoin block space. However, Bitcoin still needs fundamental reform to address the issues hindering its widespread adoption.
For example, the reintroduction of the “OP_CAT” opcode and the implementation of a new proposal called CTV will significantly improve developers’ ability to build new services on Bitcoin, making Bitcoin a more efficient and secure blockchain. While implementation of these updates is not guaranteed, they represent Bitcoin’s best chance at taking advantage of new protocol implementations like BRC-20 and Runes. This will have a profound impact on the future of Bitcoin and its community.
