NEW YORK (AP) — Sometime in the next few days or even hours, the “miners” who chisel bitcoins out of complex mathematics are going to take a 50% pay cut — effectively slicing new production of the world’s largest cryptocurrency in half.
That could have a lot of implications, from the price of the asset to the bitcoin miners themselves. And, as with everything in the volatile cryptoverse, the future is hard to predict.
Here’s what you need to know.
Bitcoin “halving,” a preprogrammed event that occurs roughly every four years, impacts the production of bitcoin. Miners use farms of noisy, specialized computers to solve convoluted math puzzles; and when they complete one, they get a fixed number of bitcoins as a reward.
Halving does exactly what it sounds like — it cuts that fixed income in half. And when the mining reward falls, so does the number of new bitcoins entering the market. That means the supply of coins available to satisfy demand grows more slowly.
France asks retailers to alert customers to cases of 'shrinkflation'
Chinese new energy vehicle sector speeds up expansion overseas
Sudan: Aid groups warn of mass death from hunger
China, South Africa see broad cooperation prospects in automotive industry
Swiatek beats Raducanu in Stuttgart quarters. Sabalenka loses to Vondrousova
Ice and snow tourism propels NE China into high
Qinghai province activates development potential via featured industries
Various activities held across China to celebrate Int'l Women's Day
The 20 best shows to watch On Demand this weekend
Direct route facilitates Chilean cherry imports for Chinese consumers
Taylor Swift leaves QR codes with secret meanings in Sydney and Melbourne ahead of the much
Family members of mainland fishermen to go to Kinmen after fatal expulsion incident