Michael Saylor, a vocal Bitcoin enthusiast and co-founder of Strategy, recently reminded us that the world of cryptocurrency cannot be easily ignored. In a rare post without AI-generated illustrations, Saylor emphasized the fixed supply of 21 million Bitcoins - a stark contrast to the "infinite" money printing of the US dollar. This is the essence of Bitcoin: Scarcity.

19.9 million BTC have been mined so far

Currently, 19,908,015 Bitcoins have been mined. Therefore, there is only just over 1 million BTC left to mine. With the block reward halving every four years, the rate of new supply mining is slowing down.

Bitcoin historian Pete Rizzo recently pointed out that Bitcoin could eventually be mined out by August 17, 2104. It may seem far off, but scarcity is beginning to appear in today's market.

Definition of Bitcoin's Hard Cap

"Hard Cap" is the maximum supply of a cryptocurrency that is directly encoded in its code. For Bitcoin, that number is 21 million - no more, no less.

Satoshi Nakamoto designed it this way to create absolute scarcity, turning Bitcoin into digital gold in an inflationary world. Unlike the dollar or euro, no government or central bank can change the supply of Bitcoin.

That is why the Hard Cap is considered its DNA.

Can the Hard Cap change?

In theory, it is possible. But in practice, it is almost impossible.

In the early days of Bitcoin, Hal Finney once proposed the idea of inflation after reaching the cap, but he also admitted that it was just a thought experiment. Later, the block size debate in 2017 showed a strong community opposition to changing Bitcoin's rules. That debate led to the creation of Bitcoin Cash, but the original chain has maintained its position.

One analysis notes: "If something relatively minor like block size can cause such a split, imagine the chaos that would ensue if someone tried to surpass the 21 million limit."

If there are changes?

The consequences would be catastrophic. Trust in Bitcoin would collapse, investors would panic, and a hard fork would almost certainly occur. Developers, miners, and node operators would have little reason to support a change that threatens their assets.

Even if large corporations like BlackRock or Strategy support this move, acceptance still depends on community consensus. And history shows that forks rarely surpass the main Bitcoin.

Scarcity will continue

Yes, Bitcoin is open source, and the source code can be rewritten. But the Bitcoin community considers the 21 million limit to be sacred.

As Andreas Antonopoulos once said: "Bitcoin is not just a currency; it is a movement. It is about taking control of your own financial destiny."

The promise of scarcity and the trust it creates is why Bitcoin remains the leading cryptocurrency today.

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