Bitcoin was built to be open source, so anyone that doesn’t like the rules can simply make a copy and create their modified version. This is known as a Fork.
To date there have been 105 Forks, which underlines that in many people’s eyes Bitcoin’s design has flaws. It should also be seen as both underlining the democratic nature of Bitcoin as well as a reminder of a couple of basic human traits.
- You’ll never please all the people all the time.
- Greed is often the biggest driving force rather than innovation.
What matters in the end is whether the Forks are supported by Miners who act only in their own economic interest. Miners earn from creating new blocks and from fees, but without anyone using or buying the underlying coin, neither provide value, and the Fork fails.
Over four years since Bitcoin forked to created Bitcoin Cash, which itself split to create Bitcoin SV, and those two off-shoots represent less than 1% of the value of Bitcoin.
The next lesson will explore Forks in more detail, looking at the successes, failures and what they mean for the overall health of the wider ecosystem.
Leave a Reply