The Bitcoin Halving is fast approaching, with less than 2,900 blocks left before miners’ rewards are cut in half. This event, projected to take place sometime in April, is significant as Bitcoin’s price could enjoy a parabolic move to the upside after it takes place.
Bitcoin Halving Set For April 19
Data from Coinwarz shows that the Bitcoin Halving is set to take place on April 19 at Block 840,000. This projection is based on Bitcoin’s current block time average, which means the Halving can come a little earlier or sometime after April 19. However, the main focus remains that miners’ supply will be cut in half.
The Halving event is a deflationary measure that Bitcoin’s founder, Satoshi Nakamoto, encoded in the flagship crypto and takes place after every 210,000 blocks. Three halving events have occurred since the Genesis block in 2009, when Bitcoin’s first block was mined. The first was on November 28, 2012, when miners’ rewards were cut from 50 BTC to 25 BTC.
The next Halving event took place on July 9, 2016, cutting miners’ rewards to 12.5 BTC. The third one happened on May 11, 2020, reducing the reward to 6.25 BTC. Now, Miners’ rewards are set to be cut in half again, reducing them to 3.125 BTC.
This reward is the amount of BTC miners receive for validating each block of new transactions on the blockchain. Although this event mainly affects miners, the crypto community closely monitors it due to the ripple effects it could have on the market. Bitcoin’s supply comes through these miners’ rewards, and a reduction in them usually drives Bitcoin’s value higher.
Bitcoin’s Performance After Each Halving
The Halving has historically always led to a price appreciation for Bitcoin. Ninety days after the first Halving on November 28, 2012, Bitcoin’s price increased to $1,000 from $12 at the time of Halving. Subsequently, Bitcoin’s price saw a gain of over 8,000% one year after that Halving.
Source: MilkRoad
This parabolic price surge also occurred after the second and third Halving events, with Bitcoin’s price rising from $650 and $8,821 (at the time of the Halving) to $2,506 and $56,612 (90 days after the Halving) in 2016 and 2020 respectively. Bitcoin also gained 284% and 559% one year after the event.
This time isn’t expected to be different as Bitcoin is again predicted to experience a massive move to the upside after April. This bullish sentiment is further strengthened by Bitcoin’s demand, which has continued to skyrocket in the face of a dwindling supply.
At the time of writing, Bitcoin is trading at around $70,400, up in the last 24 hours according to data from CoinMarketCap.
BTC price struggles ahead of halving | Source: BTCUSD on Tradingview.com