Bitcoin Cash (BCH) is a cryptocurrency that was created as a result of a hard fork from the original Bitcoin (BTC) network on August 1, 2017. The fork occurred due to disagreements within the Bitcoin community regarding the scalability and transaction processing time of the Bitcoin network.
Bitcoin Cash aims to address the scalability issue by increasing the block size limit, allowing for more transactions to be processed in each block. This larger block size enables faster and cheaper transactions compared to Bitcoin.
Key features of Bitcoin Cash include:
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Increased block size: Bitcoin Cash has a larger block size of 8 MB (compared to Bitcoin's 1 MB), which allows for more transactions to be confirmed in each block.
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Lower transaction fees: Due to the larger block size, Bitcoin Cash transactions generally have lower fees compared to Bitcoin. This makes it more suitable for everyday transactions.
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Faster transaction confirmation: With larger blocks, Bitcoin Cash can confirm transactions more quickly, offering faster settlement times compared to Bitcoin.
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Continued blockchain compatibility: Bitcoin Cash shares the transaction history of the original Bitcoin blockchain up until the point of the fork. This means that anyone holding Bitcoin at the time of the fork received an equal amount of Bitcoin Cash.
It's worth noting that Bitcoin Cash is a separate cryptocurrency from Bitcoin (BTC), despite having a shared history up until the fork. Bitcoin Cash has its own development team and community, and its value and market capitalization are distinct from Bitcoin.
As with any cryptocurrency, it's important to exercise caution and do your own research before engaging in transactions or investments involving Bitcoin Cash. Cryptocurrencies can be highly volatile, and the market conditions can change rapidly.