It’s been over 3 years since August 1, 2017, the day Bitcoin Cash was born. I know because I was there and part of the loosely knit ‘team’ that launched the Bitcoin Cash project. Now, after some time has passed and events have unfolded, I am excited to give you an update on where we are today.
Bitcoin Cash was born from a contentious fork with BTC, and this event was the culmination of a 4-year debate inside of the Bitcoin community over how to scale the network. The BTC side essentially chose not to scale the network in favor of high miner fees. The BCH side chose instead to scale the blockchain to accommodate more users.
This was a legitimate disagreement and fracturing of the Bitcoin community. Many today are unaware of the real nature of that conflict, and many people have been deliberately or unwittingly fed misinformation about Bitcoin Cash.
Here are Just 10 of the Many Exciting Developments Going on in Bitcoin Cash
CashFusion. The most advanced coinjoin protocol ever developed. Providing both privacy and fungibility, CashFusion is a fully decentralized and trustless protocol that operates at the wallet layer. By leaving the base protocol untouched, it also avoids certain regulatory risks.
CheckDataSig. A protocol change to allow external data signatures to be included in a transaction. This enables the operation of oracles, which have a multitude of use cases, along with other possibilities.
Covenants. A technical innovation that allows Bitcoin script to apply constraints on what the outputs can do. This allows smart contracts like AnyHedge and the Mecenas Last Will.
Bitcoin Cash Meetups. More than 90 BCH meetups have been launched around the world with the BCH meetup support desk that is open 7 days a week, which is run by BCH enthusiasts. Active meetups in some of the cities such as Tokyo and Bangkok are hosting the meetups weekly, supporting the BCH ecosystem by bringing business to the merchants that accept BCH and attracting new members.
Corporate Adoption. In addition to the support of the biggest companies in the industry (Coinbase, Bitpay), Paypal has recently announced the addition of Bitcoin Cash to their platform along with other major cryptocurrencies. There has been increasing demand in the Grayscale Bitcoin Cash trust.
Smart Contract Languages. Bitcoin Script is notoriously difficult to work with due to its obscure stack-oriented structure. High-level programming languages like Spedn and Cashscript are now available, empowering developers to pursue permissionless innovation.
Decentralized Development. We have recently demonstrated that no one is in charge of Bitcoin Cash, not even its developers. Six independent node teams collaborate in a distributed manner.
Read.Cash – a content publishing platform with built-in tipping in Bitcoin Cash. It has thousands of contributors and articles and continues to grow.
Defi on Bitcoin Cash – The AnyHedge protocol allows synthetic derivatives and gives the ability to create new markets so users can instantly take a position on any asset with a price. We’ve leveraged the power of smart contracts on Bitcoin Cash to usher in a new era of trustless and non-custodial trading.
Token Extensions – Beyond the rich SLP ecosystem, further innovations keep happening. For example, a dividend tool that allows you to pay token holders. Imagine the possibilities. A “post office” protocol that allows you to send and receive tokens without any BCH “gas” for fees. Atomic swaps for tokens. Mineable tokens. The permissionless innovation never seems to let up.
The Future is Bright
Bitcoin Cash has retained its multi-billion dollar market cap over several years and is here to stay. It’s a flagship cryptocurrency with solid fundamentals.
I have nothing but heaps of praise for the community of Bitcoin Cash. We are focused on using Bitcoin as money — as peer-to-peer cash. The clarity of our vision keeps us on track. Bitcoin Cash is stronger now than it was three years ago, and we continue to learn, build, grow, and evolve.