The homogenized token protocol Runes, which was launched synchronously with the BTC halving, has sparked a craze for engraved runes, causing Bitcoin transaction fees to skyrocket. Miners have become the biggest winners, with Bitcoin miners earning $107 million yesterday, reaching a new historical high.
Background:
Another sleepless night: What’s next for Bitcoin after its fourth halving?
Bitcoin’s fourth halving was officially completed on Saturday, April 20th, Taiwan time, reducing the block reward from 6.25 BTC to 3.125 BTC. Initially, there were concerns that miner revenue would be cut in half after the halving, and miners might sell BTC to maintain their operational costs. However, Julio Moreno, Director of Research at CryptoQuant, shared data showing that Bitcoin miners earned $107 million yesterday, setting a new historical high and significantly surpassing the single-day record of $77 million set in April 2021.
We know that Bitcoin miner revenue consists of two parts: 1. Block rewards and 2. Transaction fees. Of the record-breaking revenue of $107 million, the largest portion is from transaction fees, accounting for 75% ($80.5 million), while the remaining $26.2 million is from block rewards, accounting for only about 24.6%.
Baylor Landry, an executive at SC&P, also stated that the total miner revenue from the last 77 blocks before the fourth halving was only $35 million, but after the halving, the first 77 blocks generated $75 million in miner revenue, making it more of a doubling. However, can this situation continue?
Runes drives a surge in transaction fees
The surge in Bitcoin transaction fees after the halving is mainly due to the homogenized token protocol Runes, which was launched synchronously with the halving. After the protocol went live, users rushed to mint runic tokens, causing Bitcoin transaction fees to skyrocket. At one point, high priority fees even exceeded 2,200 sats (about $200).
Data from Dune analytics shows that after the halving, transactions related to the Runes protocol accounted for as high as 57.7% of total Bitcoin transactions.
Bitcoin transaction fees have since significantly declined. According to mempool data:
– Current non-priority fees are 14 sats ($1.29) per byte.
– Low-priority fees are 76 sats ($6.98) per byte.
– Medium-priority fees are 84 sats ($7.71) per byte.
– High-priority fees are 93 sats ($8.54) per byte.
Unless the popularity of Runes continues, it is reasonable to expect miner revenue to return to normal values. If the coin price does not significantly increase, it may even be lower than before the halving.
Related Reports:
– Bitcoin completes halving: How do top exchanges Binance and Coinbase view the crypto market post-halving?
– After Bitcoin halving: What impact will it have on the BTC NFT ecosystem?
– PlanB remains firm: The raging bull market is not over, and Bitcoin will rise above $300,000 after the halving.