Overview
- The split began Saturday at block 961,632 when nodes enforcing BIP-110 started rejecting non‑signaling blocks and the enforcing branch mined two blocks before stopping at 961,633.
- Support for the change was tiny before enforcement with just 51 of 2,016 blocks signaling (about 2.53%), and observers estimate the enforcing branch controls roughly 0.15% of total hashpower.
- Because the minority fork inherited Bitcoin’s current difficulty, it must mine roughly 2,015 more blocks to trigger a recalculation and supporters estimate that at current rates this could take decades to complete.
- BIP-110 does not include replay protection, creating a risk that coins spent on the minority chain could be replayed on the main chain and forcing exchanges, wallets, and custodians to choose which chain to honor.
- Backers briefly resumed mining on the stalled tip and are discussing contingency steps such as a proof‑of‑work change, but no activation schedule exists and the episode has sharpened a wider governance dispute over who can change Bitcoin’s rules.