Halving: major event for Bitcoin in 2024?
Bitcoin news is constantly buzzing, with periodic events that captivate the attention of investors and enthusiasts. If currently much attention seems to be focused on the upcoming arrival of a possible BTC ETF, another key moment, which is certain, is called halving. But what does this mean?
What is halving?
Halving, or âhalving,â is an event intrinsic to the Bitcoin protocol. It occurs every four years, or approximately every 210,000 blocks mined. The next halving should therefore take place during April 2024.
The initial goal of the halving is to limit the total supply of Bitcoin, setting it at 21 million units. Concretely, halving halves the reward that miners receive for each block added to the blockchain.
In 2009, the reward awarded for each block mined on the Bitcoin chain was 50 bitcoins. Following the first halving, this reward was reduced to 25 bitcoins, then to 12.5 bitcoins, before stabilizing at 6.25 bitcoins per block from May 11, 2020. It will therefore be 3.125 bitcoins per block from the next Halving.
This programmed scarcity aims to emulate the scarcity of precious metals like gold. The halving is therefore:
đȘ an essential building block of the anti-inflationary nature of Bitcoin, thus giving the cryptocurrency store-of-value characteristics.
This therefore contrasts sharply with traditional monetary systems, where central banks can issue new currencies at will and as they see fit.
