Bitcoin's BRC20 Token Economy Skyrockets 192% To $279 Million In Just Four Days

In just under two weeks, the number of unconfirmed transactions on the Bitcoin network has skyrocketed from 134,000 to over 390,000, causing a bottleneck in the mempool. This surge in unconfirmed transactions has resulted in a staggering 343% increase in transaction fees, which have risen from $1.99 per transaction on April 26 to a current rate of $8.82 per transaction as of May 7. Bitcoin miners are struggling to keep up with the demand, leaving many users frustrated and unable to complete their transactions in a timely manner.

As of Sunday, May 7, 2023, the Bitcoin network is experiencing a major traffic jam due to an overwhelming number of unconfirmed transactions. The latest statistics reveal that a whopping 390,000 transfers are currently stuck in limbo, waiting for confirmation.

This backlog can be attributed to the surge in minting and transferring of Ordinal inscriptions and BRC20 tokens, which have flooded the network. In fact, the Bitcoin blockchain is now hosting over 13,000 BRC20 tokens and a staggering 4.17 million Ordinal inscriptions, further exacerbating the congestion.

To clear the current backlog, a whopping 179 blocks would need to be mined. Given the average block time of 10 minutes, it would take approximately 1.24 days to mine the required number of blocks. This backlog has caused transaction fees to skyrocket by a whopping 343% over the past 11 days. As per bitinfocharts.com data, the average transaction fee currently stands at 0.00031 BTC or $8.82 per transfer.

Bitinfocharts.com further shows the median-sized Bitcoin transaction fee currently stands at 0.00018 BTC or $5.16 per transfer. However, the situation is far from ideal, as per mempool.space. The website reveals that a low-priority fee will set you back $7.74, while a medium-priority fee costs $7.90.

For those who need their transactions processed urgently, a high-priority fee of $7.99 per transfer. Adding to the frustration is the fact that the current block time is longer than the ten-minute average, with the last block taking a whopping ten minutes and 55 seconds to be discovered.

The clogged mempool has been a hot topic on social media lately, with users expressing a range of opinions on the matter. While some are excited about the surge in activity, others have labeled the rise of non-financial transactions as a DDoS or an attack.

Bitcoin is not under attack.

The anemic block size increases simply weren't sufficient to meet demand, and Lightning didn't see mass adoption.

Quit whining. Either accept that a huge mempool and high fees will be the norm, or properly increase the block size.

— Sam Patt (@SamuelPatt) May 7, 2023

Despite the optimism of some, the rise in unconfirmed transactions has not led to a significant increase in Lightning Network adoption. This is because it is still expensive to open and close a channel, and non-custodial solutions are few and far between.

At precisely 11:07 a.m. (ET), the largest crypto exchange in the world, as measured by trade volume, has temporarily halted bitcoin (BTC) withdrawals. The exchange has attributed this decision to a “congestion issue” that the Bitcoin network is currently grappling with.

“Our team is currently working on a fix until the network is stabilized and will reopen BTC withdrawals as soon as possible. Rest assured, funds are SAFU,” Binance wrote on Sunday morning.

What are your thoughts on the current state of the Bitcoin network? Do you think the surge in unconfirmed transactions and fees is a temporary setback or a sign of deeper issues? Share your opinions in the comments section below.

Jamie Redman is the News Lead at Bitcoin.com News and a financial tech journalist living in Florida. Redman has been an active member of the cryptocurrency community since 2011. He has a passion for Bitcoin, open-source code, and decentralized applications. Since September 2015, Redman has written more than 7,000 articles for Bitcoin.com News about the disruptive protocols emerging today.

Image Credits: Shutterstock, Pixabay, Wiki Commons

Disclaimer: This article is for informational purposes only. It is not a direct offer or solicitation of an offer to buy or sell, or a recommendation or endorsement of any products, services, or companies. Bitcoin.com does not provide investment, tax, legal, or accounting advice. Neither the company nor the author is responsible, directly or indirectly, for any damage or loss caused or alleged to be caused by or in connection with the use of or reliance on any content, goods or services mentioned in this article.

Following a Brief Fee Spike, Gas Prices to Move Ethereum Drop 76% in 12 Days

Transaction fees on the Ethereum network are dropping again after average fees saw a brief spike on April 5 jumping to $43 per transfer. 12 days later, average ether fees are close to dropping below $10 per transaction and median-sized ... read more.

In just under two weeks, the number of unconfirmed transactions on the Bitcoin network has skyrocketed from 134,000 to over 390,000, causing a bottleneck in the mempool. This surge in unconfirmed transactions has resulted in a staggering 343% increase in transaction fees, which have risen from $1.99 per transaction on April 26 to a current rate of $8.82 per transaction as of May 7. Bitcoin miners are struggling to keep up with the demand, leaving many users frustrated and unable to complete their transactions in a timely manner.

As of Sunday, May 7, 2023, the Bitcoin network is experiencing a major traffic jam due to an overwhelming number of unconfirmed transactions. The latest statistics reveal that a whopping 390,000 transfers are currently stuck in limbo, waiting for confirmation.

This backlog can be attributed to the surge in minting and transferring of Ordinal inscriptions and BRC20 tokens, which have flooded the network. In fact, the Bitcoin blockchain is now hosting over 13,000 BRC20 tokens and a staggering 4.17 million Ordinal inscriptions, further exacerbating the congestion.

To clear the current backlog, a whopping 179 blocks would need to be mined. Given the average block time of 10 minutes, it would take approximately 1.24 days to mine the required number of blocks. This backlog has caused transaction fees to skyrocket by a whopping 343% over the past 11 days. As per bitinfocharts.com data, the average transaction fee currently stands at 0.00031 BTC or $8.82 per transfer.

Bitinfocharts.com further shows the median-sized Bitcoin transaction fee currently stands at 0.00018 BTC or $5.16 per transfer. However, the situation is far from ideal, as per mempool.space. The website reveals that a low-priority fee will set you back $7.74, while a medium-priority fee costs $7.90.

For those who need their transactions processed urgently, a high-priority fee of $7.99 per transfer. Adding to the frustration is the fact that the current block time is longer than the ten-minute average, with the last block taking a whopping ten minutes and 55 seconds to be discovered.

The clogged mempool has been a hot topic on social media lately, with users expressing a range of opinions on the matter. While some are excited about the surge in activity, others have labeled the rise of non-financial transactions as a DDoS or an attack.

Bitcoin is not under attack.

The anemic block size increases simply weren't sufficient to meet demand, and Lightning didn't see mass adoption.

Quit whining. Either accept that a huge mempool and high fees will be the norm, or properly increase the block size.

— Sam Patt (@SamuelPatt) May 7, 2023

Despite the optimism of some, the rise in unconfirmed transactions has not led to a significant increase in Lightning Network adoption. This is because it is still expensive to open and close a channel, and non-custodial solutions are few and far between.

At precisely 11:07 a.m. (ET), the largest crypto exchange in the world, as measured by trade volume, has temporarily halted bitcoin (BTC) withdrawals. The exchange has attributed this decision to a “congestion issue” that the Bitcoin network is currently grappling with.

“Our team is currently working on a fix until the network is stabilized and will reopen BTC withdrawals as soon as possible. Rest assured, funds are SAFU,” Binance wrote on Sunday morning.

What are your thoughts on the current state of the Bitcoin network? Do you think the surge in unconfirmed transactions and fees is a temporary setback or a sign of deeper issues? Share your opinions in the comments section below.

Jamie Redman is the News Lead at Bitcoin.com News and a financial tech journalist living in Florida. Redman has been an active member of the cryptocurrency community since 2011. He has a passion for Bitcoin, open-source code, and decentralized applications. Since September 2015, Redman has written more than 7,000 articles for Bitcoin.com News about the disruptive protocols emerging today.

Image Credits: Shutterstock, Pixabay, Wiki Commons

Disclaimer: This article is for informational purposes only. It is not a direct offer or solicitation of an offer to buy or sell, or a recommendation or endorsement of any products, services, or companies. Bitcoin.com does not provide investment, tax, legal, or accounting advice. Neither the company nor the author is responsible, directly or indirectly, for any damage or loss caused or alleged to be caused by or in connection with the use of or reliance on any content, goods or services mentioned in this article.

Following a Brief Fee Spike, Gas Prices to Move Ethereum Drop 76% in 12 Days

Transaction fees on the Ethereum network are dropping again after average fees saw a brief spike on April 5 jumping to $43 per transfer. 12 days later, average ether fees are close to dropping below $10 per transaction and median-sized ... read more.

Four days ago, the market capitalization of all the BRC20 tokens built on top of the Bitcoin network was a modest $95 million. However, over the past four days, the BRC20 market valuation has seen tremendous growth, increasing by 192% and reaching $279 million.

The BRC20 token standard, which is built on top of the Bitcoin network, is gaining momentum and the BRC20 token economy is flourishing. As of Sunday, May 7, 2023, the BRC20 token economy is valued at $279.07 million, with approximately 13,530 tokens in circulation. This marks a significant increase from just four days ago when the BRC20 token market capitalization was $95 million and there were around 10,487 BRC20 tokens.

The top ten most valuable BRC20 tokens today are ordi, pepe, piza, meme, moon, punk, domo, oshi, xing, and shib. Ordi is currently the most valuable BRC20 coin, with a single ordi token exchanging hands for $9.46. With a market valuation of $200 million, ordi dominates the entire BRC20 token market capitalization by more than 71%.

Pepe, another BRC20 coin (not to be confused with the ERC20 meme coin with the same name), has a market capitalization of around $17.6 million. The top five BRC20 token market valuations, which include ordi, pepe, piza, meme, and moon, account for 86.55% of the $279.07 million total. Not only is ordi the top BRC20 coin in terms of market capitalization, but it has also generated $3.1 million in 24-hour trade volume.

As of May 7, 2023, Dune Analytics recorded 3.11 million BRC20 transactions. Bitcoin miners have earned 214 bitcoin (BTC), which is equivalent to $6.2 million, from the BRC20 ecosystem. While creators of these tokens have implemented various supply caps, data from brc-20.io reveals that out of the top 118 BRC20 tokens by market cap, 80 of them have opted for a max supply of 21 million.

What do you think the future holds for the BRC20 token economy? Share your thoughts in the comments section below.

Jamie Redman is the News Lead at Bitcoin.com News and a financial tech journalist living in Florida. Redman has been an active member of the cryptocurrency community since 2011. He has a passion for Bitcoin, open-source code, and decentralized applications. Since September 2015, Redman has written more than 7,000 articles for Bitcoin.com News about the disruptive protocols emerging today.

Image Credits: Shutterstock, Pixabay, Wiki Commons

Disclaimer: This article is for informational purposes only. It is not a direct offer or solicitation of an offer to buy or sell, or a recommendation or endorsement of any products, services, or companies. Bitcoin.com does not provide investment, tax, legal, or accounting advice. Neither the company nor the author is responsible, directly or indirectly, for any damage or loss caused or alleged to be caused by or in connection with the use of or reliance on any content, goods or services mentioned in this article.

Ripple CEO: SEC Lawsuit Over XRP 'Has Gone Exceedingly Well'

The CEO of Ripple Labs says that the lawsuit brought by the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) against him and his company over XRP "has gone exceedingly well." He stressed: "This case is important, not just for Ripple, it’s ... read more.