BIP-110 Bitcoin Fork Stalls After Miners Produce Just Two Blocks

TLDR:

• The BIP-110 Bitcoin fork produced only two blocks in about eight hours, while Bitcoin’s main chain advanced by 48 blocks.
• The minority chain inherited Bitcoin’s mining difficulty despite securing only a small fraction of the network’s total hashpower.
• Its next difficulty adjustment may take roughly 350 days at the observed pace, compared with about 14 days under normal network conditions.
• Identical transaction rules expose users to replay risk, as a fork-coin transfer could also move BTC on Bitcoin’s main chain.

The BIP-110 Bitcoin fork has effectively stalled after miners produced only two blocks during its first eight hours. Meanwhile, Bitcoin’s main chain advanced by 48 blocks over the same period. The split began at block 961,632, when BIP-110 nodes rejected a block lacking the proposal’s required signal. 

The minority branch later stood at a height of 961,633, while Bitcoin reached 961,681, data from the BIP-110 monitor indicated. That widening gap reflects limited hashpower behind the breakaway network. It also leaves transactions slow and trading risky. The chain remains far from completing the blocks needed for its next difficulty adjustment after the split.

Why the BIP-110 Bitcoin fork has little mining support

The split started when AntPool mined the block that did not signal support after mandatory signaling began. Standard Bitcoin nodes accepted that block, while BIP-110 computers rejected it. A miner using OCEAN then produced a signaling block, giving supporters an alternative branch.

This divergence does not mean the BIP-110 Bitcoin fork’s restrictions have activated. The immediate split comes from the proposal’s signaling requirement. Its reduced-data rules would begin at block 965,664 if the prescribed activation sequence occurs.

BIP-110 proposes restricting non-financial information inside Bitcoin transactions for about one year. Targeted material includes images, text, Ordinals inscriptions, and other arbitrary data. Supporters argue these uses consume scarce block space and raise costs for payment users.

Opponents say fee-paying users should decide how they use block space. They reject consensus rules that classify some valid transactions as less legitimate. The dispute concerns Bitcoin’s neutrality and node authority.

Miner signaling offered little evidence of broad support before the split. Only 51 blocks backed BIP-110 during the previous 2,016-block period, equal to 2.53%. The proposal requires 1,109 signaling blocks, or 55%, to meet its threshold.

The BIP-110 Bitcoin fork therefore entered mandatory signaling with support far below that level. Its branch can survive only if miners direct computing power toward signaling blocks. The monitor has not recorded enough activity to match Bitcoin’s ten-minute schedule.

Inherited mining difficulty leaves the branch stranded

However, Bitcoin mining difficulty creates the branch’s main obstacle. Bitcoin recalculates difficulty every 2,016 blocks to target ten-minute intervals. The minority chain inherited the main network’s setting despite attracting little computing power.

That imbalance leaves each new block taking several hours. The monitor estimates the branch could need about 350 days to reach its next adjustment. Bitcoin should complete the same span in approximately 14 days under normal conditions.

BIP-110 Situation Monitor. (Bip110.orange.surf)

The BIP-110 Bitcoin fork cannot lower its difficulty before completing that interval. Unless substantially more hashpower arrives, slow production can persist. Its nodes require every block to signal support through height 963,647.

At the observed pace, the branch would not approach that endpoint during the intended two-week period. Forced lock-in sits at height 963,648 under the published schedule. Reaching that height still depends on miners producing the missing blocks.

The stalled branch also creates transaction replay concerns. Both chains recognize the same transaction format and ownership signatures. A transaction spending fork coins may therefore remain valid on Bitcoin’s main network.

A buyer could rebroadcast that signed transaction on the main chain and potentially move the seller’s BTC. Users need chain-specific controls or separated coins before attempting transfers. The fork lacks automatic replay protection distinguishing one branch from the other.

Slow confirmations create another barrier for any market trading the minority asset. Sellers may wait hours for one confirmation, while deeper settlement could take much longer. Exchanges and wallets also need procedures for deposits, withdrawals, naming, and replay management.

Bitcoin continues accumulating proof of work much faster than the BIP-110 Bitcoin fork. Standard nodes follow the valid chain with the greatest accumulated work, leaving the minority branch isolated unless new miners join.

The post BIP-110 Bitcoin Fork Stalls After Miners Produce Just Two Blocks appeared first on Blockonomi.