The Bitcoin blockchain has seen a surge in fees due to a high demand of block space, propelled by Bitcoin Request for Comment (BRC-20) tokens and the Ordinals protocol. The average transaction fees have grown to level unseen since the cryptoasset hit a record peak of $60,000 in May 2021, during European hours on Monday. The past week brought with it the surfing of 3 million NFT tokens to the blockchain and the growing popularity of the Ordinals protocol. As a result, there are now more than 11,000 tokens currently available on the open market with a market capitalization of over $1.6 billion and Ordi (ORDI) being the most valued of these tokens with around $220 million and over 7,000 unique holders.

The rise of BRC-20 tokens has created many opportunities such as Pepe tokens with a market capitalization of $17 million and other similar tokens being issued on the Bitcoin blockchain. This rapid transactional activity has sparked interest from analysts who now view it as a sign of network adoption and Bitcoin's storytelling. That's why the largest cohort of transactions is precisely those below $1, strong contrast to the 1,000 to 10,000 range seen during the 2019 peak. This change indicates a high velocity, Bitcoin being moved and transacted instead of held at bay in cold wallets.

Though the adoption may bring great news and further service the expanding universe of tokens, the overuse has created some issues, to the point that platforms like Binance were forced to temporarily suspend Bitcoin withdrawals at some point. As it stands, there are nearly 415.000 unconfirmed Bitcoin transactions pending, a figure that exceeded the heights reached during the bull runs of 2018 and 2021.



Other News from Today