A Comprehensive List of Bitcoin Forks

Bitcoin forks have been a significant part of the cryptocurrency's history, with numerous instances of the protocol being split into two or more separate chains.

Segregated Witness, also known as SegWit, was a major fork that occurred in 2017, allowing for the separation of signature data from transaction data in the Bitcoin blockchain.

Bitcoin Cash was created in August 2017 as a result of a fork in the Bitcoin protocol, with a larger block size limit of 8MB compared to Bitcoin's 1MB.

Bitcoin Gold was created in October 2017 as a fork of the Bitcoin protocol, with a focus on reactivating the use of ASIC miners.

A Bitcoin fork is when a new set of rules is introduced to the Bitcoin blockchain, causing it to diverge into two potential paths forward.

The simplest way to understand a fork is to imagine a fork in the road, where users can choose to follow one set of rules or another.

Bitcoin forks can have a profound impact on the blockchain and cryptocurrency, or they might not, depending on the circumstances and the sentiments of the community and developers.

Some software clients, like the ones mentioned, attempt to increase transaction capacity of the network, but none have achieved a majority of the hash power.

These clients are essentially forks of the original software client for the Bitcoin network.

The choice to follow one set of rules or another is similar to a fork in the road, where users can elect to follow one path or another.

Bitcoin forks have been a significant part of the cryptocurrency's history, with some resulting in new and notable cryptocurrencies. One notable fork is Bitcoin Cash, which was created in August 2017.

Bitcoin Cash introduced a larger block size limit, allowing for faster transaction processing. This change was made to address scalability issues that were affecting Bitcoin's performance.

The Bitcoin Cash fork was led by a group of developers, including Roger Ver and Amaury Séchet, who wanted to create a more practical version of Bitcoin. They believed that the increased block size would make Bitcoin Cash more suitable for everyday transactions.

There have been several forks of the software client for the bitcoin network over the years.

One notable fork is an attempt to increase transaction capacity of the network.

The clients that have forked off the main software include Bitcoin XT, Bitcoin Classic, and Bitcoin Unlimited.

These software clients all aimed to increase the block size limit, which would allow for more transactions to be processed at once.

None of these forks were able to achieve a majority of the hash power, however.

In a fork, the blockchain diverges into two potential paths forward. This happens after a new rule is introduced, allowing users mining the blockchain to elect to follow one set of rules or another.

The choice between the two paths is similar to a fork in the road, where you have to decide which way to go.

The most-work block becomes the point of divergence, with the blockchain splitting from this block.

Bitcoin XT was one of the first notable hard forks of bitcoin, launched in late 2014 by Mike Hearn.

It aimed to increase the block size from one megabyte to eight megabytes, and proposed a significant boost in transaction speed, from up to seven transactions per second to 24.

Bitcoin XT initially saw some success, with updates and nodes operating until late 2018, when it was essentially abandoned.

The fork was launched to include several new features proposed by Mike Hearn, but it is no longer maintained.

Bitcoin Classic was launched in early 2016, proposing to increase the block size to only two megabytes, a smaller increase than Bitcoin XT's eight megabytes.

Some developers still support Bitcoin Classic today, but the community has largely moved on to other options as it is no longer maintained.

The project saw initial interest, but it failed to gain significant traction like Bitcoin XT did at the time.

Bitcoin Classic remains an interesting footnote in the history of Bitcoin forks, but its lack of progress has relegated it to the sidelines of the cryptocurrency community.

In 2017, a significant disagreement in the Bitcoin community led to the creation of Bitcoin Cash, which split from the main blockchain in August 2017.

Bitcoin Cash allowed for blocks of 32 megabytes, speeding up network transaction processing times and making it the most successful hard fork of the primary cryptocurrency.

Bitcoin Gold, another hard fork, followed in October 2017, aiming to bring mining back to graphics processing units (GPUs) and make Bitcoin more accessible.

The Bitcoin Gold hard fork introduced a "post-mine", where the development team mined 100,000 coins and placed them into a special "endowment" to grow and finance the ecosystem.

Bitcoin Gold differs from Bitcoin in its proof-of-work (PoW) algorithm, requiring miners to use a different method.

These hard forks demonstrate the flexibility and adaptability of the cryptocurrency ecosystem, allowing for different visions and implementations to emerge and coexist.

Satoshi's Vision, also known as BSV, was created as a result of a split in the Bitcoin Cash community by a handful of figures surrounding Craig Wright.

Craig Wright's claim to be Satoshi Nakamoto was debunked by a London High Court judge in March 2024, who stated that the evidence against Wright was overwhelming.

Wright's version of the protocol proposed to increase the blocksize by hundreds of times, allowing cheaper transactions and more throughput for decentralized applications.

Bitcoin SV was hard forked from Bitcoin Cash in November of 2018.

It now has only a fraction of the users and transaction volume of either Bitcoin or Bitcoin Cash.

Taproot is an upgrade that was installed in November 2021, adding support for Schnorr signatures and improving functionality of smart contracts and the Lightning Network.

This upgrade adds privacy features, making complex transactions indistinguishable from simple ones in terms of on-chain data.

One of the key benefits of Taproot is reduced transaction costs, achieved by reducing the data size of complex Bitcoin transactions.

Here are some of the benefits of Taproot:

Super Bitcoin, as its name suggests, is like Bitcoin on steroids. It has a circulating supply of 21,210,000 SBTC, of which 210,000 was pre-mined.

The team behind Super Bitcoin picked through what they liked best about the current Bitcoin protocol and introduced some added features. They increased block sizes from 1MB to 8MB to improve scalability.

Super Bitcoin will run Bitcoin's lightning network and plans to support anonymous payments with zero-knowledge proof by May of next year. This feature is a significant upgrade to the current Bitcoin protocol.

The team wants to implement Ethereum-inspired smart contracts into Super Bitcoin's program. This will allow third parties to build decentralized apps on the new protocol.

Super Bitcoin's distinguishing feature isn't even Bitcoin-related – it comes from Ethereum. The team includes INBlockchain Inc. founder Li Xiao Lai, Link Capital founder JaiPeng Lin, and Ranger Shi.

Bitcoin Platinum (BTP) was spearheaded by a South Korean teenager with the goal of making money by shorting Bitcoin.

The teenager's plan was to profit from Bitcoin's short-term price trend by introducing a new fork.

The project's intention was to help the teenager make a profit, but it's unclear if this goal was ever achieved.

Bitcoin Cash Plus (BCP) is a fork of Bitcoin that wants to fulfill the original promise of Bitcoin as "Peer-to-Peer Electronic Cash". It has a website, but lacks information about its coin supply.

The update is scheduled for block 501407, which will be our first fork of the New Year on January 2nd. It utilizes the Equihash algorithm to prevent mining centralization with ASIC hardware, preferring GPU mining instead.

Bitcoin Cash Plus also offers on-chain scalability with 8MB blocks, the same as Super Bitcoin. It makes use of Bitcoin Cash’s Emergency Difficulty Adjustment, which allows miners to easily switch between the BTC and BCP networks.

Protecting Bitcoin Cash Plus from hashing fluctuations, this adjustment allows it to decrease mining difficulty under emergency circumstances.

Silver (BTCS) is joining the GPU revolution with its Equihash algorithm, making it ASIC-resistant like BUM, BTP, and BCP.

This means that Silver (BTCS) will only be mined using graphics cards, which can be a more accessible and cost-effective option for miners.

The circulating supply of Silver (BTCS) will be 21,000,000, with a pre-mine included.

This is the same total supply as Bitcoin, which is a notable similarity between the two cryptocurrencies.

Silver (BTCS) has a block size of 1MB and Segwit activated, giving it some of the same features as Bitcoin.

Its block time is a relatively fast 30 seconds, which is a distinguishing characteristic compared to its parent currency.

Bitcoin Atom, or BCA, is an evolved Bitcoin with atomic swaps and lightning network.

The team behind Bitcoin Atom believes that atomic swaps will usher in a new era of decentralization to cryptocurrencies, allowing completely trustless, peer-to-peer exchanging without the need for any third party.

Bitcoin Atom will operate using a hybrid proof of work and proof of stake distributed consensus mechanism to secure the currency against mining attacks and concentration of network power.

There will be a 21,000,000 supply of Bitcoin Atom, per tradition.

The team has not revealed whether or not there will be a premine.

Litecoin (LTC) is considered one of the more successful Bitcoin forks, and it's easy to see why. It created its own version of the original cryptocurrency by reducing block sizes and transaction times, making it a quarter faster than Bitcoin.

The founder, Charlie Lee, opted to increase the maximum supply to 84 million, which is four times that of Bitcoin. Litecoin is currently listed in the top ten cryptocurrencies, the only Bitcoin fork to do so.

Litecoin has undergone a number of hard forks itself, creating a few notable coins you might recognize. Dash, one of Litecoin's notable hard forks, was later forked to create PIVX and Blocknet.

Zcash (ZEC) is a well-known privacy-focused cryptocurrency forked in 2016.

Its unique feature is offering users two options when executing a transaction: transparent, like Bitcoin transactions, and shielded, which leverage "zero-knowledge succinct non-interactive arguments of knowledge" technology.

Zcash is currently sitting just outside of the top 50 cryptocurrencies at #52.

Bitcoin forks have been a recurring theme in the cryptocurrency world, and there are several notable examples beyond the most well-known ones. Bitcoin Cash was created in August 2017, with a block size limit increase to 8 MB.

One of the key differences between Bitcoin Cash and Bitcoin was the block size limit, which was a major point of contention between the two camps. Bitcoin Cash's block size limit was indeed increased to 8 MB.

In addition to Bitcoin Cash, another notable fork is Bitcoin Gold, which was created in October 2017, with a focus on re-energizing the Bitcoin mining community. Bitcoin Gold's mining algorithm was changed to Equihash.

Bitcoin SV, or Bitcoin Satoshi Vision, is another fork that emerged from the Bitcoin Cash fork, with a focus on implementing the original Bitcoin protocol as envisioned by Satoshi Nakamoto. Bitcoin SV's block size limit was set to 128 MB.

A fork in the road, or rather, a fork in the blockchain. A hard fork introduces a new set of rules for Bitcoin to follow.

The choice to follow one set of rules or another is similar to a fork in the road, where users mining the blockchain can elect to follow one path or another. This choice can have a profound impact on the blockchain and cryptocurrency, depending on the circumstances and the sentiments of the community and developers.

Intended hard forks are a type of fork where the entire network agrees to change its rules, resulting in a new cryptocurrency. This is a deliberate action taken by the community to create a new version of the original cryptocurrency.

The first intended hard fork splitting bitcoin happened on August 1, 2017, resulting in the creation of Bitcoin Cash. This was a significant event in the history of cryptocurrencies.

A hard fork is created by changing the blockchain rules and sharing a transaction history with the original cryptocurrency up to a certain time and date. This means that owners of the original cryptocurrency receive a corresponding amount of the new cryptocurrency.

Notable intended hard forks splitting bitcoin include Bitcoin Cash and Bitcoin Gold. Here's a list of these forks by date and/or block:

A hard fork can be a game-changer for a blockchain and cryptocurrency, but its impact depends on the circumstances and community sentiment.

The introduction of new rules through a fork can lead to a divergence in the blockchain's path, resulting in two potential paths forward.

The choice to follow one set of rules or another is left up to the users mining the blockchain, similar to a fork in the road.

This decision can have a profound impact on the community and developers, making it a crucial aspect of a hard fork.

Ultimately, the outcome of a hard fork is unpredictable and depends on various factors, including the community's sentiments and the developers' decisions.

The first major bitcoin fork occurred in late 2014. This was done to add new features to the blockchain.

Forks in bitcoin are not uncommon, with the currency undergoing many splits since its introduction in 2009. Each of these splits has created a new version of the currency.

The first introduction of bitcoin in 2009 marked the beginning of its fork history.

Bitcoin has been around since 2009 and has had many forks. Some forks tried to improve upon the original, while others attempted to avoid changes.

The number of forks is significant, with many projects emerging over the years. In fact, there are so many forks that it's hard to keep track of them all.

Bitcoin Unlimited, for example, is a fork that aimed to increase the block size limit. They have separate solutions for node operators and miners.

Bitcoin Cash is another notable fork that was created in 2009. It's listed on CoinMarketCap and has its own home page.

Bitcoin Gold is a fork that was created in 2017. It's listed on CoinMarketCap and has its own home page with detailed information.

It's worth noting that some forks have been more successful than others. Bitcoin Cash, for instance, has a dedicated community and a significant market capitalization.

Here are some notable forks mentioned in the article:

Bitcoin God, also known as GOD, is an upcoming fork of the main bitcoin chain.

It's scheduled to fork off at block height 501225, which is expected to happen on December 25th.

Chandler Guo, its creator, aimed for this date to be symbolic of him giving candy to all Bitcoin Holders.

The fork will have a circulating supply of 21 million GOD coins and no pre-mine.