“Bitcoin,” the king of cryptocurrencies, is preparing to reach a historically significant milestone: the 20 millionth Bitcoin is about to be mined. According to on-chain data platform Clark Moody Dashboard, there are currently 19,996,979 Bitcoins mined and in circulation, just about 3,000 away from 20 million. Based on the block production rate, it is estimated to be achieved in approximately 7 days.
At that point, over 95% of the total supply of 21 million Bitcoins will be in circulation, with the remaining 1 million expected to take over a century to mine completely.
Satoshi Nakamoto, the creator of Bitcoin, embedded the 21 million supply cap into the original code when designing the protocol, creating a form of currency with “absolute scarcity,” in stark contrast to fiat currencies issued by central banks, which can be increased at any time.
Although Nakamoto never publicly explained why he chose the number 21 million, this unbreakable limit has become an unwavering belief among Bitcoin enthusiasts. To them, any proposal to alter the supply cap is a fundamental betrayal of Bitcoin’s value as a “hard currency.”
Bitcoin’s scarcity is often compared to gold and oil. However, in traditional commodity markets, if gold or oil prices surge, producers typically increase extraction or find new sources to boost supply and stabilize prices. Bitcoin is different; because its issuance curve is transparent and immutable, no matter how wild the market prices become, the supply cannot be accelerated.
Bitcoin’s issuance rate decreases with each “halving event,” which occurs approximately every four years, reducing the block reward for miners and slowing new coin issuance. Currently, Bitcoin’s inflation rate has fallen below 1%, with about 450 new coins produced daily.
At this pace, 99% of the total supply will be mined by January 2035, and the last full Bitcoin is expected to be mined around 2105. The remaining smaller fractions will continue to be released gradually until around 2140.
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