Analyst Claims Fees are Skyrocketing, Putting Bitcoin Under Siege by BRC-20 Coins

Bitcoin Transactions and Fees Surge, Putting the Network Under Siege by BRC-20 Coins

Bitcoin transactions and fees are at an all-time high, with over 400,000 of them still unconfirmed on the blockchain. The surge in fees and a backlog of transactions are besieging the Bitcoin network, and it’s due to a popular new “token” standard called BRC-20. CryptoQuant analyst Axel Adler Jr. explained that BRC-20 memecoin minting on the BTC blockchain is causing the surge in block space demand.

According to Adler Jr., BRC-20 does not utilize smart contracts and operates only with wallets supporting the Bitcoin blockchain, unlike conventional token standards such as Ethereum’s ERC-20. The surge in BRC-20 coins is causing a surge in block space demand, leading to increased transaction fees.

CryptoQuant reported that the average fee per transaction has skyrocketed, exceeding $16 and peaking at $29 on May 9. Bitinfocharts also reported a spike in the average transaction fees, recording a jump to $31 on May 8 compared to around $19 the day before. On May 8, the total fees per block temporarily exceeded the block subsidy reward of 6.25 BTC for the first time since 2017.

On May 9, Bitinfochart data recorded a new all-time high on the seven-day moving average for the number of Bitcoin transactions, hitting a top of 534,000. However, the figure could be higher, with Bitinfocharts recording two higher spikes over 600,000 daily transactions this month using raw values. On May 9, it recorded 598,000 BTC blockchain transactions. Blockchain.com has confirmed the data, reporting that the average transactions per block are also at an all-time high of 3,778.

The backlog of unconfirmed transactions is not clearing, with Mempool Space reporting 400,000 unconfirmed transactions pending on the network. This backlog is keeping transaction prices elevated, putting the Bitcoin network under siege by BRC-20 coins.

Key Takeaways

• Bitcoin transactions and fees are at an all-time high, with over 400,000 of them still unconfirmed on the blockchain.
• The surge in fees and a backlog of transactions are due to the popularity of a new “token” standard called BRC-20.
• BRC-20 memecoin minting on the BTC blockchain is causing the surge in block space demand, leading to increased transaction fees.
• The average fee per transaction has skyrocketed, exceeding $16 and peaking at $29 on May 9.
• The backlog of unconfirmed transactions is keeping transaction prices elevated, putting the Bitcoin network under siege by BRC-20 coins.