Is Bitcoin's Reign as King of Cryptocurrency in Danger?
Regardless of where your allegiances lie in the crypto community, homage should be paid to the original Blockchain solution - Bitcoin. However, it has been 10 long years now since Bitcoin came into being (an eternity in the cryptocurrency space) and things are starting to get away from the King.
Bitcoin’s path was forever changed in August 2017 when a new challenger stepped up to the plate amid the rapidly escalating scaling debate. Bitcoin Cash appeared with its backers claiming it to be the one true ruler. Not long after this came Segwit 2x's failure to launch, which essentially confirmed Bitcoin’s status as digital gold. As a digital gold, it may have no rivals, but in the world of cryptocurrency it may have played its last move.
Scaling is a constant topic for evolving cryptocurrencies, and if Bitcoin cannot scale properly soon, it could be abandoned by investors for a more forward thinking cryptocurrency.
An aging King
After bringing in millions of users to the cryptocurrency space, Bitcoin has hit a log jam on its network as available blocks fill up with transactions quicker than they can be mined. This backlog has led to higher transaction fees and longer waiting times.
These factors all end up being counterproductive to the principles underpinning cryptocurrency which are to eliminate the power that banks have over money. Banking fees and centralised waiting times are part and parcel of the irritation that comes from another entity being in control of one's money. Bitcoin is increasingly picking up these bad habits, leaving its users with a feeling of déjà vu harking back to the days when banks held a monopoly over monetary services.
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