Categories: News

Is BIP 202 The Bitcoin Block Size Solution Everyone Can Agree On?

For those in the Bitcoin community who hoped the block size debate had come to an end will be sorely mistaken. However, there seems to be good news, as a new GitHub proposal has been made by Jeff Garzik to incrementally increase the Bitcoin block size over time. BIP 202 is not overly complicated, and could end up being the solution everybody has been waiting for.

Also Read: Can Companies Simplify The Conversion From Bitcoin To Fiat Currency?

BIP 202 – Small Block Size Increments, Starting at 2 MB

Even though very few Bitcoin blocks come remotely close to the artificial block size limit of 1MB, there have been various proposals to increase this maximum size for quite some time now. As Bitcoin gains more popularity, the number of network transactions will increase, which could lead to confirmation delays if the block size is kept at 1 MB.

Coming to a consensus on how this block size should be increased, has proven to be quite a struggle. Many people want to swing for the fences and increase the block size by quite a margin when the next block reward halving takes place. However, there are some serious drawbacks to that solution.

First of all, the Chinese mining pools – which represent the majority of the Bitcoin network hashrate – are not in favor of very big blocks, as the local Internet infrastructure is unable to cope with the demand of large data chunks. Secondly, the blockchain is already huge in size as it is right now, and adding blocks five times the current size to that chain will only make things even worse.

Last but not least, there has to be a majority consensus before things can change, and with the current proposals, that has proven to be nearly impossible. Bitcoin Core developer Jeff Garzik came up with an alternative solution that, on paper, seems to please all parties involved. BIP 202, as this solution is called, will double the block size to 2 MB, as well as small further increases over time.

Related Post

This proposal would be acceptable for Chinese mining pools as 2 MB blocks are not that huge of a difference. Additionally, the Chinese Internet infrastructure will – hopefully – be upgraded sooner or later to cope with more data consumption. Smaller incremental block size increases leave plenty of time for this infrastructure to take place, or find other solutions in the meantime.

At the time of publication, it remained to be seen whether or not anyone wants to support BIP 202. Jeff Garzik’s idea holds a lot of merit that can be beneficial to all parties involved. The question remains whether or not the majority of the Bitcoin network – including mining pools and payment processors – will come to a decision sooner rather than later.

[interaction id=”56744f5f8161d2223277c295″]

Source: GitHub

Images credit 1,2

JP Buntinx

JP Buntinx is a FinTech and Bitcoin enthusiast living in Belgium. His passion for finance and technology made him one of the world's leading freelance Bitcoin writers, and he aims to achieve the same level of respect in the FinTech sector.

Share
Published by
JP Buntinx

Recent Posts

Solana’s $3.2M Entrepreneur Story & BlockDAG’s $1 Potential

How Solana Transformed an Entrepreneur’s Life & Why BlockDAG Could Be the Next Millionaire Maker…

5 hours ago

SOL Market Cap Hits $100 Billion as Possible Infinaeon Long-Term Price Targets Surge

The SOL price has surged to well over $200 as its market capitalization exceeded $100…

10 hours ago

Binance Coin Whales Reap Big Profits as Polkadot Struggles; A New Crypto Presale Is Dominating Investor Attention

BNB is already flashing signs of a bearish sentiment despite launching a new stablecoin while…

12 hours ago

Three Crypto That Surprised The Market: Rollblock, Cardano, and XRP

The crypto market is no stranger to unexpected twists. However, the recent performances of Rollblock,…

12 hours ago

As Bonk (BONK) and Pepe (PEPE) Shine, Rollblock (RBLK) Captures the Market’s Attention With Upcoming Reveal

Meme coins are back with a bang and are as insanely volatile as ever! Bonk…

12 hours ago

2024’s Top 9 Crypto Staking Platforms to Make Passive Income

Staking has become one of the most effortless ways to generate passive income in the…

15 hours ago