Unveiling 5 crucial insights on the Bitcoin halving
As we anticipate the Bitcoin halving in 2024, let’s take a data-driven approach to explore this rare event and its implications. Here are five intriguing facts about the upcoming halving:
1. Bitcoin’s dwindling supply: Bitcoin has been designed in a way that most of its total supply is already in circulation. After the halving, there will only be 1.3 million BTC left for miners to discover, and this supply must last until 2140. From now on, only 450 BTC will be created per day, resulting in just 657,000 BTC entering the market between now and 2028. This impending supply shock will have a significant impact.
2. Surge in “Bitcoin halving” searches: The curiosity surrounding the Bitcoin halving is evident in the record-breaking number of Google searches for the term. While there were some modest spikes in interest during the 2016 and 2020 halvings, the search volume for the 2024 halving has surpassed all previous records. Nigeria, The Netherlands, Switzerland, Cyprus, and Slovenia are the top countries displaying the most interest in this event.
3. BlackRock’s bullish stance: BlackRock, the world’s largest asset management firm, has shown great optimism by launching an exchange-traded fund (ETF) based on Bitcoin’s spot price. This move allows institutional investors to gain exposure to the halving without directly owning the digital asset. Jay Jacobs, an executive at BlackRock, considers the iShares Bitcoin Trust, which currently manages $18 billion in assets, to be the fastest-growing ETF of all time. Jacobs emphasizes the importance of halvings in maintaining Bitcoin’s value proposition as a transparent cryptoasset with a finite supply.
4. The rise of Bitcoin Ordinals: Bitcoin Ordinals, similar to non-fungible tokens (NFTs), have gained popularity in the Bitcoin ecosystem. These Ordinals allow rare messages, images, and videos to be inscribed on a single satoshi, which is equivalent to one 100 millionth of a Bitcoin. Despite Binance discontinuing support for these crypto collectibles, the demand for Ordinals has skyrocketed. In just 24 hours, Ordinals sales have reached $13.8 million, surpassing the combined sales volumes of Ethereum and Solana.
5. Uncertainty in the short-term outlook: While it’s common for people to make random Bitcoin price predictions, betting markets provide a more tangible perspective. According to Polymarket, the odds suggest a 46% chance of Bitcoin reaching $100,000 this year, with sentiment waning in recent weeks. Only 11% believe that Bitcoin will reach $250,000 by December. Additionally, with Bitcoin briefly experiencing its lowest price since February as the halving approaches, 17% of bettors believe that the cryptocurrency will not surpass $60,000 on the day of the halving.
As we eagerly await the Bitcoin halving in 2024, these facts shed light on the evolving landscape of the cryptocurrency market and the anticipation surrounding this significant event.
