The end of bitcoin has been predicted and discussed about many times in its short history. It was always able to prove all the critiques wrong by epic come backs. Even now when market cannot decide on its next big move, up or down. These moves usually come when nobody is expecting. One important question any responsible investor would ask is, will be bitcoin be around in the future.
Bitcoin is a mathematical miracle and also is a truth machine. Bitcoin in its current form with the current code has an end date. On February 7th, 2106 at 06:28:15, bitcoin will no longer be able to function properly. It will simply break. The reason for this is its timestamp. Timestamp is one of the important feature of bitcoin that makes this magical money possible. The timestamp in bitcoin uses 32 bit unsigned unix timestamps. The unix timestamps are represented in seconds, date-time count starts from January 1st, 1970.
There is a limit the number of seconds can be stored. 32 bit signed timestamps would even have problems much earlier and stop on January 19th, 2038. But bitcoin uses 32 bit unsigned integer for the timestamps. This will run out in 2106. Since there is a lot of time and almost a century to solve this problem, it is unlikely to see any changes anytime soon. Nonetheless, we can say with mathematical certainty that bitcoin in its current form has and end date.
Any changes to solve this problem will require a hard-fork. It can simply be fixed by using 64 bit integers for the bitcoin timestamps. While such hard-work won't necessarily need to change anything else in bitcoin protocol, it will have to introduce a new rule to verify the blocks. Another important to ask is how would this new verification rule handle the older blocks. It seems like after the activation of a new rule, whenever it happens, the blocks before activation will use the old rule of verification and the new blocks will use the new rule of verification.
2106 is too far away. Who know what will happen by then. Will we even have bitcoin by then? I tend to believe we will still have bitcoin, at the very least as antique asset. Bitcoin will definitely be written in the history and finance books as a technology that has contributed to improving people's lives and played important role in transformation of global financial systems and helped building a better future for humanity.
Yes, bitcoins days are mathematically numbered in its current form. But it is not going anywhere. The code will be changed when the right time comes to fix the 32 bit integer overflow problem. As far as everything else about bitcoin, it is just getting started. Last decade, it may have been considered as a fun experiment. Today, it is taken more seriously. Governments around the world recognize the effects it has as an alternative financial system. Companies, small and big, see the opportunities and evaluating their positions. More and more people from around the world from all walks of life are figuring it out and getting a better understanding.
Bitcoin is no longer the future. It is the present. We see cities and countries showing interest in taking advantage of all the benefits it offers and competition is getting started. It will get even more interesting in coming years. It was able to educate people about money. Many of the shenanigans practiced by central banks and traditional banking systems have been revealed to public, due to the interest and public discourse about bitcoin. It will attract even more attention as inflation of the fiat currencies we use continue going unexpectedly high and start affecting people's lives.
Bitcoin has redefined and let us reimagine what money is and what role it plays in our lives. Arguably, it is the hardest money we have today. Not to be confused with currencies. Money and currency are two different things. Currencies usually derive their value from money. Money is bigger than currencies. Bitcoin as money is great. However, as currency it may not be as efficient. There are solutions for that as well in a form of layer 2 lightning network, other blockchain solutions like Litecoin, Monero, Zcash, Hive, HBD, etc. Many of the alternative coins are in fact fighting to become a better currency. Bitcoin has already won the title of money. It doesn't need to compete in currency space.
While none of this is a financial advice and everybody is responsible to make their own financial decisions, I have come to a conclusion to never doubt bitcoin as a technology and an investment instrument. I have made mistakes of doubting it in the past. But no more. At the very least, I can say with confidence that it always goes back to its previous all time high prices, that is represented in fiat. Anything more is just a bonus. Protect your wealth and property. Think Bitcoin!
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No one is immune to time, not even bitcoin...
😂
The info on the mathematics of bitcoin is interesting. Not what I was expecting to read lol.
I'm like you in that I stopped doubting bitcoin. It has proven itself time and time again. I was a bit concerned though, when the EU was considering banning PoW because of the energy consumption argument. Climate change and the measures that countries agreed to after the Paris agreement and COP21 to reduce emissions, do not help bitcoin. The problem is with how we create energy not how we use it in my opinion, but still, cryptos based on PoW will be at risk going forward. Especially if things continue up to deteriorate as rapidly as they have been - weather-wise I mean.
I think use of clean renewable energy will be explored and developed in bitcoin mining just motivated with better returns. I think we will see more of that in coming years.
I hope so. I think that switching to 100% renewable energies for everything is the likely long term scenario.
Oh... same inflation narrative(: ... some times it looks like everyone are waved by this, talking about this.
I too talked about this many times sine the past 2 years...made songs too... one is in the tune of the angry bird song.
Yes... still believe BTC is your wealth protector for now...I am looking at BTC's utility for the next 5 to 10 years, relatively short...and its interesting, because fiat currency era is numbered or not?...an witness it and its not fun because well, be a BTC believer or not, ultimately need cash to spend and Govt. restricts crypto investments through harsh regulations..
I am fighting in my own way...the system by trying out ways to be in crypto without using CEX now...its a little challenging, very infact but not that much, I believe can engage in crypto avoiding CEX...not all one's relevant to me, regulated by my country(India).
Anyway... BTC is HOT, popular and hard money...even though we have to be in BTC in more tactical ways which I will talk about later to protect your privacy... That's why I feel Monero is required too...privacy crypto... and I am looking at it but I wish I had expanded my prespective to XMR rather than BTC... ETH and those coins have high transaction fees and privacy nah...
So, it takes experience in the space... BT will be there and will be relavent next 30 years atleast, after that can't say...its grand crypo coins of all other crypto coins that emerged.
There are people who say I am promoting BTC, PR, scam etc...they say BTC is not a asset coz it does not have value like real estate... but its money as you said, not a commodity... anyway...shugs
perhaps, in a decade hoomans will need not money, just shelters, ammo, non-radioactive water and food supplies, this sort of things. yeah, I am a pessimist.
This is quite a possibility
they say, 'people have the power'. here in Russia we are not allowed even to pronoubnce the word 'war' - in public... many people secretly leave green ribbons in public places - a silent sign of their disagreement with gang politics. we cannot change the situation, our country has long been stolen by thieves. sorry for this sudden exclamation. all the reasonable folks here are shocked and frustrated.
Its similar in the west, except the word you are not allowed to say is "peace". Meaning we are not allowed to advocate anything that could possibly deescelate the situation from all out world war between nuclear powers or you are a "russian asset". In germany businesses are attacked even for merely employing such people - or even people whos grandparents fled from russia becouse im sure they are somehow responsible.
Wow this is shocking to read. I thought that germans are quite neutral
Germany is not neutral, Germany is divided in two groups, it is pure black and white, some say driven by government and their official media. Result families split and fight each other, some things are not well received to be said in public otherwise you get bashed.
Wow so sad.....this separation never leads to good things long term...
Oh we recently had this nice article about it being entirely legal for germans to join the war and on either side so long as they are identifyable as combatants and dont do warcrime..... buuuuut we would stop people from fighting on the side of russia as well as anyone they deem to be an extremist would be stopped from going to fight for ukraine, too. Obviously i think fighting for any nationstate to be a bad idea but it is also clear that this requires giving up on the idea that we shouldnt illegaly detain people for legal activities. Yeah its not great.
We also banned russia today and sputnik from europe. So now if you only follow normal news you can only learn negative things about the west and only positive things about russia unless of course you believe everything unquestioningly, if you dont, well those are the parts you can believe from western media becouse they go counter to what theyd like you to tell, so... Now if i was cynical id suggest maybe that is the aim, to make people more extremely opposed to the west so that they can justify more violence against dissenters... other than that i dont see there being a point to it.
In the end I believe that we are all the same and that wars can only throw the illusion that somehow humans can become enemies over a piece of land or over resources. Everybody on this Planet will die empty handed as we take nothing from what we have accumulated. Rich or poor, civilian or politician, we are the same. It is a pitty that mass media and the collective mentality promotes this separation. I wish for a better future for the children, where they will realize that we can all live in peace if we want to
Damn! How did
democracywe end up so low... maybe the future generations will explicit it clear and loud. I know only the one thing for sure -- Big Money won, and it is rather about capitalism, not democracy... right?This what you say about the cituation in Germany, sounds like we all are being manipulated -- in a devilish manner. 🙄😳😳😳😶
I would suggest that manpipulation goes back even further, that democracy or socialism and capitalism are indeed in part misunderstood in meaning in part misunderstood in implications. The reason why i think people think the people with money are capitalists and forgot that corporations are a socialist idea lies more in the economic model, that is, keynesian economics, which focusses on the exchange of money and not any money, either, state issued money, fiat currency.
Which really at this point, how is that much different to a social credit system when they can directly freeze or take from your bank account? Increasingly, only socialists can be rich in this system.
Whereas an austrian economist would very much describe it as profitable to feed the poor, provided you value knowing that people do not starve.
Democracy, well weve had that in the weimar republic as well.
Heres the thing about a democratic republic, all the incentives are in favor of more and more centralisation of power.
And morally i dont see how democracy is different from a gang-rape anyways.
We can very much analyse governance through the lense of economics - the privately owned state of a monarchy versus the public owned state of a democracy, with the added distinction that also they are only elected temporarily so that they own only the current usage of the state and not its capital growth, incentivising the draining for personal benefit in the shortterm whereas a monarch actualy owns the realm, can pass it on, sell it in whole or in part and so on so that the incentives would be a lot more longterm. It also means as a civilian you are a lot less concerned with war, the distinction between combatant and civilian are a lot more clearly defined.
Of course there can be bad and authoritarian monarchs but even then, they are relativly easy to deal with with as the people get themselves some sharp tools.
Im not a monarchist, mind, i am advocating for voluntaryism or capitalism, in the vein of Proudhon (yes, hes the guy that said "Property is theft" - in context speaking about illegitimate property gained through violence as most landproperty was gained that way rather than through legitimate homesteading). He also said "Property is liberty"), mises, rothbard and hoppe.
If anything, the way seems to be going more socialist going forward, with central bank digital currencies directly tied to a digital ID system, the bank of England outright explicitly suggesting that it could be programmable so that people could only buy what the government says is essential or whatever your employer allows you to buy, advertising it with how convenient it would make it to control how your child is allowed to spend its pocket money and shit like that.
Oh I can understand how this reality in which you live can be frustrating. Russia looks like a very bad place to live in now, with no freedom of choice...
This is truly sad....it reminds me of the communist times which happened here in my country Romania. Hard to believe that in 2022 this is still a reality
I am more optimistic of the future. We will have no more wars. :)
hey, the most informed optimists are... er.... they become pessimists, you know. thats our running joke here. by the way, are you in the know, that WW1 altered title was 'the final, ultimate war', or "the war that will get rid of the wars". ehehe.
a Hive !PIZZA for you ...
In that case you will also want to stockpile some good 'ol Lugols iodine. I read they were passing it out after Fukushima as it's well known iodine can counteract radiation damage, as well as other things needed in your post-apocalyptic scenario, like disinfecting water and for disease.
as for post-apocalyptic scenario... speaking personally, I am not 100% sure I gonna continue to stomp the ground and play "survival games", even for my family. what for?..
I wish I could do time travel to 2106 just to see how the world looks like then.
Bitcoin not only offers a completely open system of finance but has also proved itself over ten years as reliable and dependable. Bitcoin’s resilience, brand, and dependability all make it stand out from the rest of the crypto asset industry. 2106 is such a long time ! That’s longevity in all ramifications!!
I think bitcoin is completely open, meaning anybody can join or leave the network as they wish.
Whoa! that's pretty nuts. I never heard of that until now. The post title sure had me panicked for a sec. :P
lol, sorry.
all good. it was good tho..🤠
I loved your post!! So perfectly explained. I had no idea about it, and now I'm learning more in LeoFinance. Thanks a lot for sharing!
Thank you.
I mean who discovered this smart way of making money? Bitcoin if it will end would be on a Wednesday lol. for real tho, Bitcoin really gave us a different mentality and knowledge of money and you gave a clear explanation of that, thank you @geekgirl
Bitcoin is revolutionary.
But, much like VHS tapes, it has inspired us to think about what is possible. But a better format will emerge. That new format may be part of a hardfork, or it might simply be a different crypto/blockchain.
Bitcoin will survive (assuming the code is forked to get around the date issue), but it will also evolve.
When the crypto evolution is complete, we will finally start comparing fiat to crypto. The market will show that $1USD is 3 satoshi instead of the other way around.
The fact about this Bitcoin timestamp is what makes it almost impossible to predict the future outcome of BTC as money. It has changed so many lives for good. It still will. And I strongly stand by it.
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Now I see why Hive shows January 1st 1970 as the 'last time seen' for newbies.
Seems to be a blockchain thing.
I learnt something new!😀
Bitcoin and perhaps the concept of boockchain might have even evolved beyond what we know today.
Technological knowledge in this age grows exponentially and we might be able to exactly say to what extent we'll have evolved by the 2100s.
It's a programming thing for data and time.
Will the last bitcoin come out? As the difficulty levels and costs increase, there is an expectation that we will never reach the last bitcoin.
I think the last bitcoin will be mined in around 2140.
bitcoin will end before because it's unsustainable. That doesn't mean the idea is bad. But the original code will change at some point or the coin will get replaced by something else.
If you don't believe me, look how much energy bitcoin would need in 2/5/10 years.
I don't agree with that argument. Use of energy and bitcoin incentive will motivate miners to explore and develop use of renewable energies. Energy used to mine bitcoin is probably the most efficient one when it comes to energy input and the value created relationship.
I see it very differently. Bitcoin is a good idea but really inefficient.
At the end of the day only a secure balance matters.
Energy cost is the balance protection of bitcoin.
If a better model comes, bitcoin loses 100% of its value with time. But that's ok.
Will it mean it will lose value soon? I don't think so.
But Bitcoin already wastes a lot of energy for nothing ( mining could be also real-world problem solving).
Wasting renewable energies doesn't make it better. And I'm not a green "safe the planet". It's simply unsustainable.
Look at the curve.
Look curve in 10 years, look in 20. Doesn't work. Bitcoin could fork to something efficient or something else.
Wow, it is very hard for me to believe before but through your explanation I totally agreed with you that bitcoin days are numbered
bitcoin feeds china tho right?
How so? China has banned bitcoin mining and crypto activities.
I was expecting more of an article about the times bitcoin has died but the mathematical part is quite interesting. I think the hard fork for that will come out eventually because the miners probably don't want BTC to die but they won't prioritize it until it's way close to the deadline.
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Tricked you. lol. Yes, they will probably implement some hard-fork in 2105.
Perhaps in 2106, Bitcoin will be tangible in the form of coins made of an expensive and rare material, or perhaps the world will witness changes in the climatic and political conditions because wars have increased at this time. Is it possible in your opinion to go back to the time of barter?
I am more optimistic about the future and maybe the world will be war free.
Good article. So this is one more reason of flippening by the eth? As eth probably does not have expiry date.
Probably not. I don't know.
Maybe they don't extend the timestamp but instead start the counter again and airdrop token balances from the snapshot just before the overflow.
This is the first time I would be hearing such with a ending date wow this is really interesting to know
Many things could change up to 2106. Perhaps, something might replace Bitcoin and we might not need it anymore 🤷♂️
It is so far into the future, hard to know what will the world look like in 80 years.
This is smart. I mean you are the first person to explain. Absolutely most tuition on Bitcoin. Why has this never been mentioned !
2106 is really a long time, I don't think I'd consider that right at all.
It's just good to know what has a beginning also has an ending including Bitcoin.
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Didn't know about this. Thank you for this new, to me, information.
Wow! A built in expiry date! Imagine if all money had that?