Bitpay supports Segwit2x, and the battle between miners and Core heats up again

Automated Bitcoin payment processor Bitpay, a company that helps merchants offer Bitcoin payment support, has just announced its support for Segwit2x via its company blog.

Not long ago, Bitwala, one of the signatories of the New York Agreement, announced its withdrawal and no longer supported Segwit2x. This move has caused people to worry that the New York Agreement has begun to collapse and may cause more signatories to withdraw. Bitpay’s statement of support for Segwit2x at this time seems to be a hint of support for Segwit2x.

The statement indicates that the Bitpay platform will keep pace with the majority of Bitcoin chains. Based on miners’ signaled support for Segwit2x, Bitpay believes that the 2MB block size increase will occur, so it must be prepared. Bitpay founder Stephen Pair said:

“We need a blockchain as a backbone. This blockchain must be secure and its assets must be liquid. This backbone network must also be highly available. This high availability requirement means that we must keep in sync with the chain that has the majority of computing power. The block output of a Bitcoin fork with a small computing power is unstable, and if no emergency measures are taken, the chain may stop running. This service interruption is unacceptable for a company like us and our users.

Bitpay’s statement also acknowledged that Bitcoin Core does not accept Segwit2x.

Core vs. Miners?

The internal debate between Bitcoin Core and miners has reached a fever pitch, with wallet providers like Bitwala now refusing to support the New York Agreement for Segwit2x.

However, other wallets such as Breadwallet have stated their intention to follow the chain with the majority of hashrate, just like Bitpay.

In the event that Segwit2x activates and increases the block size, the impact on Bitcoin remains to be determined. Whether Segwit2x will become a “three bitcoin” solution or ultimately be accepted remains a risk and will continue to hinder price growth and stability.