Ultimate Money - Crypto News, Reviews & How to's
  • Home
  • About Us
  • Bitcoin
    Bitcoin Price Chart

    Bitcoin Price Chart

    Bitcoin Latest News

    Bitcoin Latest News

    what is bitcoin

    What is Bitcoin?

    How To Buy Bitcoin

    How To Buy Bitcoin

    Cryptocurrency ICO

    Bitcoin Wallets

  • Cryptocurrency
    Crypto Latest News

    Crypto Latest News

    Crypto Coin Reviews

    Crypto Coin Reviews

    Cryptocurrency Education

    Cryptocurrency Education

    Cryptocurrency ICO

    Cryptocurrency ICO

    Crypto Price Charts

  • Exchanges
    Top 10 Aus Exchanges

    Top 10 Aus Exchanges

    Top 10 Overseas Exchanges

    Top 10 Overseas Exchanges

    Coinspot Review

    Coinspot Review

    Binance Review

    Binance Review

    Bitmex Review

    Bitmex Review

  • How To
    What is Bitcoin?

    Get Started – Crypto Intro

    How To Buy Crypto

    How To Buy Crypto

    How To Store Crypto

    How To Store Crypto

    How To Mine Crypto

    How To Mine Crypto

    How To Bet With Crypto

    How To Bet With Crypto

  • Podcasts
  • Contact Us
No Result
View All Result
  • Home
  • About Us
  • Bitcoin
    Bitcoin Price Chart

    Bitcoin Price Chart

    Bitcoin Latest News

    Bitcoin Latest News

    what is bitcoin

    What is Bitcoin?

    How To Buy Bitcoin

    How To Buy Bitcoin

    Cryptocurrency ICO

    Bitcoin Wallets

  • Cryptocurrency
    Crypto Latest News

    Crypto Latest News

    Crypto Coin Reviews

    Crypto Coin Reviews

    Cryptocurrency Education

    Cryptocurrency Education

    Cryptocurrency ICO

    Cryptocurrency ICO

    Crypto Price Charts

  • Exchanges
    Top 10 Aus Exchanges

    Top 10 Aus Exchanges

    Top 10 Overseas Exchanges

    Top 10 Overseas Exchanges

    Coinspot Review

    Coinspot Review

    Binance Review

    Binance Review

    Bitmex Review

    Bitmex Review

  • How To
    What is Bitcoin?

    Get Started – Crypto Intro

    How To Buy Crypto

    How To Buy Crypto

    How To Store Crypto

    How To Store Crypto

    How To Mine Crypto

    How To Mine Crypto

    How To Bet With Crypto

    How To Bet With Crypto

  • Podcasts
  • Contact Us
No Result
View All Result
Ultimate Money - Crypto News, Reviews & How to's
No Result
View All Result

Bitcoin Cash Celebrates First Birthday 

by Tim Delmastro
Bitcoin Cash Celebrates First Birthday 
26
SHARES
Share on FacebookShare on Twitter

Last week marked the first anniversary of the Bitcoin hard fork which finally resolved the Bitcoin Scaling Debate after years of arguments, disputes and contentions. What resulted was a hard fork to the Bitcoin protocol which split Bitcoin into two separate cryptocurrencies – Bitcoin (BTC) and Bitcoin Cash (BCH). 

A hard fork is an update to the protocol of a cryptocurrency which requires all nodes or users to upgrade to the latest version of the protocol software. In simple terms, a hard fork is a permanent divergence from the previous version of a cryptocurrency’s blockchain. Hard forks change the underlying rules of the protocol by adding new features to the network’s functionalities, or by changing the core rules entirely. 

Before the fork

For readers new to Bitcoin, here’s a brief summary of the debate which led to last August’s hard fork: for years leading up to the fork, developers and heavyweights in the Bitcoin community debated the best process to scale Bitcoin for mass adoption. Because Bitcoin’s block size is limited to one megabyte every ten minutes, the Bitcoin network is only able to handle around seven transactions per second (compared to Visa’s 24,000). This restriction with its block size severely limits the functionality of Bitcoin as a fast and cheap payment network. 

As the popularity and use of Bitcoin grew, the increase in transactions led to network congestion, resulting in transactions being unable to be processed in the current block. This caused some transactions not to be confirmed for hours on end. In order to jump the transaction processing queue, a fee market was developed which allowed users to pay higher fees to process their transactions more quickly. This led to a rise in the cost of transactions and a fall in the user experience of Bitcoin.   

The once fast, cheap and efficient Bitcoin network was now swamped with transactions which created a slow, clunky and unreliable network. In brainstorming solutions to scale Bitcoin, the community was split into two ideologies of thought.

Block size or second layer

One idea would be to simply increase the block size, which would allow more transactions to be processed within a ten minute block. And as more and more transactions were submitted to the Bitcoin network, the block size would be continuously increased to accommodate the growth in network traffic.

The second idea posed by Bitcoin developers was to create another payment layer above Bitcoin, and then to use the Bitcoin Blockchain to verify transactions which occurred on this layer which is known as the lightning network. This separate payment layer would allow for transactions to be batched together and ‘netted out’ against other transactions in a lightning fast and extremely cheap way, and then eventually settled on the Bitcoin Blockchain. 

The debate on whether to scale Bitcoin off chain, or to increase the block size indefinitely is what is known as the Bitcoin Scaling Debate. In using the ‘congested highway’ analogy, one group offered the solution of adding extra lanes to the highway as required to meet the increasing traffic demand. The other group posed the idea of creating other methods of transportation, such as rail or air travel, which would run alongside the highway, with the commuters still being able to depart and arrive at their chosen destinations. After years of debate, the divergence in ideas saw the Bitcoin protocol split into two; Bitcoin and Bitcoin Cash.  

Without taking sides on the scaling ideologies of both BTC and BCH, there are some positives which resulted from the much feared hard fork.

Different approaches to the same problem

Bitcoin is an experiment in monetary science. It is attempting to create an immutable, censorship resistant method of value transfer which can scale en masse. In doing so, many different approaches to solve this problem should be welcomed. Many experts in the Bitcoin (BTC) camp tout that increasing the block size will lead to network insecurity. They also point out the unsustainability of continuously increasing the block size as demand on the networks grows. However, if the big block experiment is actually successful, then it can always be integrated into the Bitcoin protocol. So in a way, Bitcoin Cash, along with all other hard forks which have followed, are in essence test nets for ideas which may one day be implemented into Bitcoin. The Scaling Debate also helped to push Bitcoin in the direction of adopting Segregated Witness, an update to the code which solves the issue of transaction malleability, and makes off chain solutions like The Lightning Network possible. 

Holders of Bitcoin received an equal quantity of Bitcoin Cash as they held in Bitcoin, which meant that they could sit back and watch the development of both chains without the need to take sides. In any event, twelve months have flown by since Bitcoin’s contentious hard fork. Bitcoin continues to develop second layer solutions such as The Lightning Network, while Bitcoin Cash experiments with their 32 megabyte block size. And although both sides may think they are in competition, they’re actually experimenting with different approaches to solving the same problem of creating immutable, censorship resistant value transfer.  

Share10Tweet7
Previous Post

Risk Mitigation & Portfolio Management Ep#012

Next Post

Aussie Mining Start-up Takes On Global Bitcoin Market

Tim Delmastro

Tim Delmastro

Tim Delmastro is a multi-award winning filmmaker and journalist, having researched and documented subjects relating to Bitcoin and other current events in finance for over a decade.

His films have been broadcast on Netflix, The History Channel, Al Jazeera, SBS Australia and Emirates In Flight. Tim has been a featured guest on Fox News, RT, The Project and several radio stations and podcasts.

Note: None of the information should be considered financial advice. We merely provide opinions and education so that you can Do Your Own Research. Cryptocurrencies have a history of volatility and Ultimate Money is not responsible for any financial losses or gains you may have when investing in any crypto coins or related projects.

Related Posts

What is a SIM Swap Attack? 
Cryptocurrency

What is a SIM Swap Attack? 

How Risky Are Cryptocurrencies?
Cryptocurrency

How Risky Are Cryptocurrencies?

Blockchains and Freedom of Speech  
Cryptocurrency

Blockchains and Freedom of Speech  

South Korean Treasure Hunters Launch ICO
Cryptocurrency

South Korean Treasure Hunters Launch ICO

Leave a Reply Cancel reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

FOLLOW US

Youtube Twitter Facebook

ARTICLE POSTS

  • Bitcoin
  • Cryptocurrency
  • Exchanges
  • How To
  • Coin Reviews

WEEKLY NEWSLETTER

PODCAST SUBSCRIPTION

on Apple Podcastson Androidon Google Podcastson Stitchervia RSS
API Request timeout

TOP 10 CRYPTOCURRENCY

#

Name

Price

1 Hour

TOP ARTICLES

  • Bitcoin review
  • Buy Bitcoin with Credit Card
  • Bitcoin Mining Explained
  • Alice in Cryptoland
  • Ethereum Review

LATEST POSTS

Printing Money for Celebrity Endorsements

Printing Money for Celebrity Endorsements

Can Governments Hoard and Destroy Bitcoin

Can Governments Hoard and Destroy Bitcoin?

Turkey Turns Bitcoin Currency Crisis 

Turkey Turns to Bitcoin During Currency Crisis 

Ultimate Money Podcast Episode #015: Castlecoin Part 3

Interview with James Lynch, CEO of Castlecoin Ep#16

Seriously, Is Bitcoin Dead?

Seriously, Is Bitcoin Dead?

Ultimate Money Podcast Episode #015: Castlecoin Part 2

Behind the scenes of a Crypto Company Ep#15

What is a SIM Swap Attack? 

What is a SIM Swap Attack? 

TRENDING

  • Ethereum Review

    Ethereum Review

    0 shares
    Share 0 Tweet 0
  • Dash review

    0 shares
    Share 0 Tweet 0
  • NEM review

    0 shares
    Share 0 Tweet 0
  • Tezos coin review

    0 shares
    Share 0 Tweet 0
  • Top 10 Aus Exchanges

    141 shares
    Share 56 Tweet 35
Ultimate Money – Crypto News, Reviews & How to's

Ultimate Money is a Bitcoin and cryptocurrency education site providing guides, reviews, prices, podcasts and videos.

Article Posts

  • Bitcoin
  • Cryptocurrency
  • Exchanges
  • How To
  • Coin Reviews

Top Articles

Bitcoin review

Buy Bitcoin with Credit Card

Bitcoin Mining Explained

Alice in Cryptoland

Ethereum Review

RECENT NEWS

Printing Money for Celebrity Endorsements

Can Governments Hoard and Destroy Bitcoin?

Turkey Turns to Bitcoin During Currency Crisis 

Interview with James Lynch, CEO of Castlecoin Ep#16

Seriously, Is Bitcoin Dead?

Disclaimer: All contributors to the Ultimate Money website, related social media sites and other publishing platforms pride themselves on giving fair and balanced information on all aspects of the cryptocurrency industry. However it is very important to understand that we are NOT providing financial advice. Ultimate Money, it’s contributors and service providers are not Financial Advisors or Registered Analysts. We do not offer Bitcoin or crypto tips, strategies or trading models for you to copy. We merely provide opinions and education so that you can Do Your Own Research. Cryptocurrencies have a history of volatility and Ultimate Money is not responsible for any financial losses or gains you may have when investing in any crypto coins or related projects. Always use your best judgement when investing in any exchanges, wallets, CFD’s or other products.  Always be aware that any investment can go to zero.

  • About Us
  • Contact Us
  • Risks
  • Terms
  • Privacy

Copyright © 2018 All rights Reserved Ultimate Money

No Result
View All Result
  • Home
  • About Us
  • Bitcoin
    • Bitcoin Price Chart
    • Bitcoin Latest News
    • What is Bitcoin?
    • How To Buy Bitcoin
    • Bitcoin Wallets
  • Cryptocurrency
    • Crypto Latest News
    • Crypto Coin Reviews
    • Cryptocurrency Education
    • Cryptocurrency ICO
  • Exchanges
    • Top 10 Aus Exchanges
    • Top 10 Overseas Exchanges
    • Coinspot Review
    • Binance Review
    • Bitmex Review
  • How To
    • Get Started – Crypto Intro
    • How To Buy Crypto
    • How To Store Crypto
    • How To Mine Crypto
    • How To Bet With Crypto
  • Podcasts
  • Contact Us

© 2018 All Rights Reserved Ultimate Money.