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Bitcoin Gold will bring trading back to its decentralized roots, but its creation also means that the Blockchain network will have to handle a new hard fork.
Last updated Feb 22, 2023 at 04:36 PM
Posted Oct 25, 2017 at 12:29 AM
Bitcoin Gold will bring trading back to its decentralized roots, but its creation also means that the Blockchain network will have to handle a new hard fork. The new blockchain is designed to trade the digital currency, but not everyone is convinced that it’s a good idea, confirms ZDNet.
The Bitcoin Gold (BTG) protocol will launch on 24 October, when the split is programmed to happen, and after block 491,406 is mined. Still, cryptocurrency traders will not face a premiere when it comes to Bitcoin network forks, as they experienced in August the apparition of Bitcoin Cash.
Back then, possibilities of node disruption resulting in Bitcoin being traded on an incompatible network meant that users may have found themselves losing funds, so they were advised to hold off trading. But with the Bitcoin Gold split, they won’t experience such disruption.
However, the new blockchain will be incompatible with the existing version of Bitcoin (BTC) after a “snapshot” is taken at the time of the fork, meaning that mining machines will be limited. To add to the changes and to help resolve present issues of decentralization, ASICs won’t be allowed to mine the digital currency.
BTG will seek to let less powerful and expensive hardware to mine Bitcoin, aiming at reaching a higher worldwide usage. Equihash algorithm will be used to mine the cryptocurrency, therefore allowing the average user to use their computer power to mine.
Although Bitcoin Gold is meant to help users, many believe that the project is designed for failure. Trezor, a manufacturer of cryptocurrency wallets, announced that it will not support BTG for now, while another important exchange, Poloniex, publicly declared that Bitcoin Gold will not receive its endorsement until the code is available for review. Not to mention that some interested in crushing the project have launched the idea that it’s clearly a scam.