Bitget App
Trade smarter
Buy cryptoMarketsTradeFuturesEarnWeb3SquareMore
Trade
Spot
Buy and sell crypto with ease
Margin
Amplify your capital and maximize fund efficiency
Onchain
Going Onchain, without going Onchain!
Convert & block trade
Convert crypto with one click and zero fees
Explore
Launchhub
Gain the edge early and start winning
Copy
Copy elite trader with one click
Bots
Simple, fast, and reliable AI trading bot
Trade
USDT-M Futures
Futures settled in USDT
USDC-M Futures
Futures settled in USDC
Coin-M Futures
Futures settled in cryptocurrencies
Explore
Futures guide
A beginner-to-advanced journey in futures trading
Futures promotions
Generous rewards await
Overview
A variety of products to grow your assets
Simple Earn
Deposit and withdraw anytime to earn flexible returns with zero risk
On-chain Earn
Earn profits daily without risking principal
Structured Earn
Robust financial innovation to navigate market swings
VIP and Wealth Management
Premium services for smart wealth management
Loans
Flexible borrowing with high fund security
Ordinals Activity Ramps Up Before Halving — Alongside Bitcoin Fees

Ordinals Activity Ramps Up Before Halving — Alongside Bitcoin Fees

CryptopotatoCryptopotato2024/04/11 23:46
By:Andrew Throuvalas

Bitcoin transaction fees are on the rise again, and are expected to go higher once “Runes” goes live next week.

One week before the halving, the Bitcoin network is faced with another wave of hot demand, with some coming from a now familiar source: Ordinals traders.

As of Thursday, data from mempool.space shows that Bitcoin users are paying over 90 sats/vByte of block space, placing the average cost of a transaction at $8.50 apiece.

Ordinals Make Their Comeback

The surge in fees has corresponded with an uptick in daily Ordinals inscriptions , which tallied over 162,000 on Thursday compared to a monthly average of 90,280. Meanwhile, the “daily inscription fee spend” reached $1.24 million, its highest level in the past month.

The vast majority of network fees were contained to regular transactions, however. Some suspect that on-chain trading activity is ramping up in advance of the Bitcoin halving, which will cut Bitcoin’s supply inflation rate in half within roughly one week.

“Been monitoring Bitcoin fees for the past few weeks now, and they are starting to rise again meaningfully,” wrote CryptoSlate lead analyst James Van Stratten to Twitter on Thursday. “Bitcoin hasn’t flipped Ethereum fees in 2024; I think they might soon. Halving may be the catalyst.”

It’s not just the halving, either: on April 19, the “Runes” protocol will be activated – a new token standard on Bitcoin invented by Ordinals creator Casey Rodamor. Much like BRC-20 tokens before them, some expect that their trading activity at launch could drive fees to over $30 each.

“Runes launch at Bitcoin halving will begin memecoins on Bitcoin season,” tweeted TrustMachines CEO Muneeb Ali on Monday. “As L1 breaks with insane fees and activity, all roads lead to Bitcoin L2s.”

The Incoming Bitcoin Fee Wave

Tokens have been foreign to Bitcoin for the bulk of the network’s lifespan, though there’s reason to believe they’ll immediately gain traction when introduced.

For instance, Ordinals ushered in NFTs on Bitcoin less than 18 months ago, and have already turned the network into the most popular blockchain for NFT trading, surpassing Ethereum. On Thursday, Bitcoin’s 24-hour NFT trading volume tallied $28 million, versus Ethereum’s $9 million, according to CryptoSlam .

On the bright side, high fees from Ordinals drive up revenues for miners – the entities responsible for securing the Bitcoin network. The halving will naturally cut the bulk of miners’ rewards in half, requiring higher network fees to make up the difference for their bottom line.

 
0

Disclaimer: The content of this article solely reflects the author's opinion and does not represent the platform in any capacity. This article is not intended to serve as a reference for making investment decisions.

PoolX: Earn new token airdrops
Lock your assets and earn 10%+ APR
Lock now!

You may also like

Aster, CZ's Market Blade Targeting Hyperliquid

"If HYPE tokens continue to underperform in the coming months, it will be an excellent opportunity to buy in and build a position."

深潮2025/09/25 11:50
Aster, CZ's Market Blade Targeting Hyperliquid

The highly anticipated Plasma will go live tonight—can it change the landscape of on-chain payments?

Plasma positions itself as a settlement infrastructure for USDT and BTC, aiming to fill the gap left by Ethereum and Tron, and supports real-world payment flows.

BlockBeats2025/09/25 10:27
The highly anticipated Plasma will go live tonight—can it change the landscape of on-chain payments?

Base Faces Controversy Again: From "Is L2 Considered a Trading Platform" to Heated Debate Over Sequencer Centralization

There is ongoing controversy within the industry regarding the centralization of the Base sequencer. Some believe that the centralized sequencer of Base may affect trade execution prices and play a role similar to that of a broker, and therefore should be subject to regulation.

BlockBeats2025/09/25 10:24
Base Faces Controversy Again: From "Is L2 Considered a Trading Platform" to Heated Debate Over Sequencer Centralization