A huge day for bitcoin is almost here. The halving—or, as some call it, the "halvening"—happens roughly once every four years, and the next one is expected Friday night. The event halves the supply of bitcoin available to miners daily, and surges in the price of bitcoin followed the 2012, 2016, and 2020 halvings. Allison Morrow at CNN describes it as the "World Cup for crypto believers, because "it happens every four years, and emotions run high." More:
- Reasoning: Forbes has a primer on what the halving involves, and why some expect the price to rise. It notes that halvings "are designed to keep the supply of bitcoin limited" and to maintain "the decentralized currency's storage of value." Up to 20 million bitcoin now exist, out of a maximum total supply of 21 million.