The bitcoin protocol could see its first major fork on August 1.
That’s when, if miners stand by their word, the network will see the creation of Bitcoin Cash – a new cryptocurrency backed by a version of the blockchain that boasts a unique technical roadmap.
Not only will Bitcoin Cash tweak the protocol to increase the block size, but it will reject code proposed by bitcoin’s developers that would seek to improve scalability and reduce the necessity of this metric in achieving capacity in the future.
But while at odds with the businesses and developers that have largely embraced the Segwit2x proposal (or SegWit itself), supporters have high expectations for the project, which they’ve largely cloaked in terminology that suggests it will mark a return to the project’s roots.
“Ninety years ago, the same day, there was a revolution in China. Now today we have another revolution,” said one excited supporter in a project WeChat group.
Said another:
“The dream of a peer-to-peer digital cash for all the people restarts in a few hours.”
Lofty ambitions aside, the bitcoin fork could end up impacting users and businesses, increasing market volatility and leading to consumer and media confusion.
For more on Bitcoin Cash and what’s to come, we’ve assembled key resources below:
The Overview
Bitcoin Cash: Why It’s Forking the Blockchain And What That Means
Our highest-level overview of the Bitcoin Cash proposal.
In this feature piece, Alyssa Hertig covers the basics including who’s involved, the ideology underpinning the effort and how it differs from past attempts to scale or alter the bitcoin protocol.
Recommended reading:
- Bitcoin Cash: What You Need to Know – Jimmy Song
The Timeline
Penned by CoinDesk contributor Jimmy Song, this article provides a day-by-day timeline that charts what could happen to bitcoin and Bitcoin Cash before and after the fork.
Mark your calendars.
Key events:
- Statement on a Bitcoin User Activated Hard Fork – ViaBTC
- ViaBTC Claims Neutrality Ahead of Bitcoin Cash’s Likely Launch – CoinDesk
- The Future of Bitcoin Cash: An Interview with Bitcoin ABC lead developer Amaury Séchet – Bitcoin Magazine
How to Prepare
What does this mean for your bitcoin?
CoinDesk’s Amy Castor provides information on how users can claim their Bitcoin Cash, keep their bitcoin funds safe and monitor the fork in real time.
Recommended reading:
- Hacking Distributed – Bitcoin’s Impending Accounting Disaster
- Bitcoin Magazine – A Beginner’s Guide to Surviving a Coin Split
See a great resource online? Let us know at news@coindesk.com and help us keep our readers informed.
Image via Alex Sunnarborg for CoinDesk