- 19 of 21 million Bitcoin has now been mined, the last two will be mined by 2140
- Members of the Bitcoin community turn attention to the scarcity of the asset
19 of 21 million Bitcoin has now been mined with 2 million left until the maximum is reached. The major milestone for the flagship crypto was reached on Friday. The remaining Bitcoin will be mined by around 2140, CoinTelegraph sources reported.
When SBI Crypto mined block 730002, the 19 millionth Bitcoin entered circulation. The miner earned 6.32 BTC, just under $300,000 in transaction fees and block rewards.
Bitcoin community celebrates
The Bitcoin community was quick to celebrate the happy occasion. Mining company Bitcoin Bloem Bert de Groot told CoinTelegraph:
The 19th million Bitcoin being mined today marks a historical moment. It makes us realize once more how important the work of Satoshi Nakamoto was. We wish we could have sent flowers to show our gratitude.
Kjetil Hove Pettersen, CEO of Kryptovault, perhaps one of the ESG friendliest Bitcoin miners in the world, told CoinTelegraph:
We have only two million Bitcoin—less than 10% of the total—left to mine. This may seem like a small number at first glance, but I believe the best days of mining are still ahead of us.
Bitcoin Takeover founder Vlad Costea exclaimed:
There are only 2 million BTC left to mine in the next 118 years!
19 million have been uncovered by miners in the 13 years since the biggest crypto was created. The 18,500,000 millionth Bitcoin was mined in September of last year. At present, the issuance rate per block is 6.25 Bitcoin.
Periodically, the crypto undergoes halving, where the issuance rate is cut by 50%. The next such event is scheduled for 2024.
Highlighting scarcity
Members of the Bitcoin community turn attention to the scarcity of the asset with the 19 millionth Bitcoin being. According to Alex Gladstein, Human Rights Foundation chief strategy officer, the fact that mainstream adoption of Bitcoin is just beginning places even more emphasis on this scarcity. He tweeted:
Truly amazing that 19 million of a total of 21 million bitcoin have been issued and globally distributed and yet we are only at the very dawn of nation-state adoption.
The future of adoption
So far, only El Salvador has adopted Bitcoin as legal tender. The country is issuing Bitcoin-backed “Volcano Bonds” to raise funds. Last year, Brazil and a few other countries showed signs of Bitcoin adoption and other promising tendencies.
The Luna Foundation Guard and other entities aggressively buying Bitcoin in large amounts face an uphill battle with less than 10% of the Bitcoin left to be mined.
