Bitcoin Forks Halving: Keeping the Pulse on the Market

Bitcoin Cash (BCH)

The Bitcoin Cash halving (highly regarded by Roger Ver) took place recently on April 3, 2024. Trading activity for the coin surged in anticipation of the event, and just a day after the halving, BCH hit a three-year high of $700.

Moreover, this pioneering altcoin boasted several accomplishments:

• A 76% surge in trading volume;
• A 10% rise in market capitalization;
• A 20% growth over the last 7 days;
• A 54% increase over the past month.

By the time of the halving, the quantity of BCH held by miners had dropped to a 5-year low. This substantial sell-off allowed them to accumulate an impressive $242 million from March 29 to April 3.

Bitcoin SV (BSV)

BSV (created as a hard fork from BCH, which in turn was a hard fork of BTC) is poised for its halving on April 13, 2024, as indicated by a countdown tracker. 

Bitcoin SV (Satoshi Vision) is a cryptocurrency closely linked to Craig Wright. Its creation aimed to establish the premier global payment system, featuring low transaction fees and enhanced security, branding itself as the “true Bitcoin” according to its developers. However, the project's performance has been less than stellar: it has fallen out of the Top 20 in CoinMarketCap's rankings and, as of this article's writing, sits at 58th place with a market cap of $1.9 billion. While this is respectable for an altcoin, it doesn't meet the expectations set for a “Bitcoin alternative.”

The asset's reputation has suffered due to negative connotations, including associations with gambling and the fallout from Craig Wright's legal disputes, deterring whale investors. 

The forthcoming halving, reducing miner rewards to 3.125 BSV, may offer a chance for a shift in perception.

Bitcoin Gold (BTG)

Bitcoin Gold, a largely overlooked Bitcoin fork, is set for its halving at block height 840,000, expected around April 24, 2024.

This BTC fork, launched in October 2017, was designed to decentralize mining, enabling every user to participate in the process. 

Termed the “GPU-friendly Bitcoin,” BTG lives up to its name. Its inception by Chinese developer Hang Yin aimed at breaking the ASIC miners' monopoly. The network's hash rate is at 6.45 MH/s, mirroring Bitcoin's hash rate in 2011.

Bitcoin Gold mining is distinctive because miners distribute the coins immediately across the network, rather than holding them. 

The imminent halving aims to serve a deflationary function by slowing the influx of new coins into the market. Despite halving the mining rewards, the miner population for Bitcoin Gold is unlikely to dwindle. With a limited number of PoW cryptocurrencies remaining (for example, XMR or DOGE) that support solo mining, BTG provides a unique opportunity for mining earnings without investing in costly ASICs, ensuring continued interest in the network.

However, BTG's price has not increased. On the contrary, the asset's price has decreased alongside a 38% fall in trading volumes. Whether the halving will enable Bitcoin Gold to emerge is something only time will unveil.