Investors are eagerly anticipating bitcoin’s upcoming halving, scheduled for April, as historical patterns indicate significant price appreciation following these events.
Bitcoin, the largest cryptocurrency, has already seen impressive gains this year, surpassing 20% and reaching a value of approximately $52,000. In 2023, it experienced a substantial 150% increase. Despite this, it still remains about 25% below its record high of $68,990 reached in 2021.
Analysts are optimistic about the next bitcoin halving, expecting it to propel the crypto to new all-time highs.
Halving is an integral part of bitcoin’s blockchain algorithm and controls the supply of the currency, which is capped at 21 million bitcoins. During halvings, the reward for bitcoin mining is halved, resulting in miners receiving 50% fewer bitcoins for verifying transactions.
Halvings occur every 210,000 mined blocks, approximately every four years, until the complete supply of 21 million bitcoins is released.
The next halving is estimated to take place on April 19, although the exact timing may be subject to change, as per information from the bitcoin investment platform Swan Bitcoin. Following this halving, Bitcoin’s block reward is expected to decrease from 6.25 to 3.125 bitcoins.
Bitcoin has undergone three halvings in its history, and after each event, it experienced a significant price rally.
The first halving occurred on November 28, 2012 when bitcoin was trading around $12. Within a year, it soared to $964, showcasing substantial growth according to data from Swan Bitcoin.
During the second halving on July 9, 2016, bitcoin traded at approximately $640. In the six months following the event, its value increased by 40%, and one year later, it had achieved a remarkable gain of 296%. Bitcoin reached a cyclical peak of $19,752 on December 17, 2017.
When the third halving took place on May 11, 2020, bitcoin was trading at around $8,750. Within six months of the event, it recorded a growth rate of 79.7%, and one year after the halving, it had surged by an astonishing 547.7%. On November 10, 2021, bitcoin achieved its all-time high of $68,990.90.
Investors remain hopeful that the upcoming halving will trigger another round of impressive price appreciation for bitcoin.
