Why Bitcoin Forks

Since Bitcoin forked into Bitcoin Cash in August 2017, more and more forked coins have appeared. While investors are receiving various forked coin candies, they can't help but ask "Why did Bitcoin fork?" This article discusses this issue.

As early as when Satoshi Nakamoto created Bitcoin, he had designed the Bitcoin block to be 1MB in size. Since the transaction volume was still small at that time, the 1MB block capacity could meet the needs. However, with the continuous increase in the transaction volume of Bitcoin and other cryptocurrencies in recent years, the previous block capacity is obviously no longer able to meet the Bitcoin network's rapid transaction confirmation, so the issue of capacity expansion came into being.

And forks can be used as a way to expand the Bitcoin block. As we all know, Bitcoin is a decentralized network. When the network is upgraded, it requires everyone on the network to reach a consensus. If the consensus can be reached, no new currency will be generated. Otherwise, a new currency will be generated.

For example, the block capacity of Bitcoin is 1MB, while the block capacity of Bitcoin Cash, which was forked in August last year, is 2MB. The transaction processing speed in a certain period of time will be twice that of the Bitcoin network.

Since the Bitcoin Cash fork, various forked coins have emerged overnight, and even industry insiders have lost count of how many forked coins have appeared. So far, the IFO market has been in chaos. It is still unknown whether these forked coins will eventually surpass the status of Bitcoin, but judging from the trading situation of some forked coins, it is indeed not optimistic. Many forked coin teams are rushing to meet deadlines and speed up progress, perhaps not for the benefit of the general public in the coin circle, but for other selfish interests. The essential concepts of blockchain and Bitcoin are no longer followed in the face of the temptation of interests.

For example, Bitcoin Cash once soared to 18,000 yuan in November, a 400% increase in just three days, but then plummeted 50% in the next three hours. For a while, many industry insiders commented on this farce of soaring and plummeting from the perspectives of price war, public opinion war, computing power war, and application war.

I remember an industry insider once said: "These big guys who are engaged in forked coins don't care how high the price of the coin can go. Cutting leeks during the ups and downs may be the real business."

Therefore, there may be two answers to why Bitcoin forked: the need for expansion and the conspiracy of ambitious people.