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GLOSSARY/HALVING

Halving

PROTOCOL
DEFINITION
The scheduled event every 210,000 blocks (~4 years) that cuts the new-bitcoin issuance in half — the heartbeat of bitcoin’s fixed supply.
In 2009 each block minted 50 new BTC. Halvings in 2012, 2016, 2020, and 2024 stepped that down to today’s 3.125 BTC; ~2028 cuts it to 1.5625. The chain continues until the subsidy rounds to zero around 2140, at which point all 21 million coins exist.
Halvings are famous for preceding bull markets — supply growth halves overnight while demand persists. Whether that pattern is causation or coincidence-plus-narrative is eternally debated; the supply math itself is not.
IN A SENTENCE
“The 2024 halving cut daily new supply from ~900 to ~450 BTC.”

Key facts

Interval210,000 blocks ≈ 4 years
Current subsidy3.125 BTC/block
Next halving~April 2028
Final coin~2140

Common questions

Does the halving make price go up?

It mechanically halves new supply; price depends on demand. Past halvings preceded rallies, but past performance guarantees nothing.

Do miners survive halvings?

Inefficient ones do not — each halving culls miners whose power costs exceed the reduced reward. Efficiency decides who remains.
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