Bitcoin will be scarcer than gold after halving
Bitcoin is about to usher in its fourth halving event
For the first time since its inception, Bitcoin's annual inflation rate is lower than the inflation rate of gold, a typical means of value storage. When the Bitcoin block height reaches 840,000, Bitcoin's annual supply will be reduced by half, causing its annual inflation rate to drop from 1.7% to 0.85%. In contrast, gold supply is expected to increase by 1-2% each year, depending on technological changes and economic conditions.
To date, Bitcoin has experienced three halving events: November 28, 2012: Bitcoin's block subsidy was reduced from 50 BTC per block to 25 BTC per block. July 9, 2016: Bitcoin's second halving reduced the block subsidy from 25 BTC per block to 12.5 BTC per block. May 20, 2020: Bitcoin’s third halving reduces the block subsidy from 12.5 BTC per block to 6.25 BTC per block.
The upcoming fourth Bitcoin halving is expected to occur on April 20, 2024 at 11:00 EST, and with it, the new supply of Bitcoin per block will decrease from 6.25 BTC to 3,125 BTC. Over this period (210,000 blocks or about 4 years), Bitcoin’s supply will increase by 164,250 BTC (from 19,687,500 to 20,671,875), only 328,124 more Bitcoins away from the maximum supply limit of 21 million.