The highly anticipated fourth halving event in the leading cryptocurrency Bitcoin took place on April 21 at around 03:00 Türkiye time.
With the halving, miners' block rewards decreased from 6.25 BTC to 3,125 BTC.
Although miners' block rewards have dropped, their rewards have risen, with Bitcoin miners earning over $100 million in total rewards on April 20, with nearly $80 million from transaction fees alone.
Evaluating the situation of Bitcoin and miners after the halving, Bernstein analysts wrote that Bitcoin is currently experiencing a situation similar to the DeFi summer that Ethereum experienced in 2020.
In a research report published today, Bernstein stated that since the Bitcoin halving, miners have earned an average of 19 BTC per block, which is due to the increase in network fees.
He stated that the Runes protocol launched with the halving was effective in increasing the number of transactions and fee income on the network and said the following.
“Bitcoin is no longer a simple blockchain where nothing happens other than HODL BTC.
Bitcoin is experiencing a moment similar to the 'Defi summer' like Ethereum experienced in 2020.
Despite the halving, miners received over $100 million in rewards. This is due to speculative activities by retail investors to mint new tokens (mostly meme tokens). In other words, the newly launched Runes protocol has an impact on this increase.”
Analysts recently stated that the interest in the Runes protocol has decreased compared to the first time and said, “On a sustainable basis, we expect 15% of miner revenues to be network transaction fees. Currently, the majority of revenues come from transaction fees. Since the speculative enthusiasm in blockchains may last more than 6-18 months, miners have an above-normal income for now.” “We wouldn't be surprised if it continues to generate earnings.” said.
*This is not investment advice.