On Sunday, March 7th, 2021, the price per bitcoin rose again above the $ 50,000 mark as the total market capitalization of the digital asset is around $ 925 billion. One thing is for sure, there will never be more than 21 million bitcoin and there are roughly 18,647,525 bitcoins in circulation today. Interestingly, anyone who owns 21 Bitcoin or a millionth of the total supply is now a millionaire.
The ’21 million Bitcoin Club ‘
As early as 2017, financial publications reported on a number of crypto advocates who “shot” themselves for exclusive membership in the 21 million club. The 21 million club refers to the number of bitcoins ever produced and by 2140 that number will be 21 million BTC. Over the past few years, many enthusiasts have tried to join the 21 million club by receiving a single bitcoin that will exchange hands for a touch over $ 50,000 on Sunday morning.
For years people have found countless forum posts about people who have finally made it into the exclusive club of owners who own a single Bitcoin (BTC).
“After almost [two] Years in crypto I’ve finally gotten in, ”one person wrote on Reddit two years ago. “It may be small for most of you here, but for a person in a third world country this is a great accomplishment. Well, to focus on mine [altcoins]then sell them at the most convenient time for BTC. Wish me luck, ”he added.
Members of the 21 million club who own a single BTC also own exactly 0.0000047619% of the total supply per owner. Then there is another club of bitcoiners who received roughly 21 BTC, or 0.0000999999% of the total limited bitcoin supply.
Today, a millionth of the Bitcoin supply is worth more than $ 1 million. One millionth of the Bitcoin supply is roughly 21 Bitcoin. This week is another example of the opportunity as BTC prices lost value a few days ago after hitting an all-time high (ATH) of $ 58,354 on February 21.
21 million club artwork published by cryptoart.com and drawn by artist Alix Branwyn.
Ten days before the ATH price for Bitcoin (BTC), crypto writer Pete Rizzo tweeted: “A millionth of the Bitcoin supply is now worth $ 1 million.” At the time of publication, 132,325 addresses between 10 and 100 BTC were stored , and owners of one millionth of the Bitcoin supply are represented under this set of addresses.
Besides the enthusiasts who simply want to join the 21 million club with a single coin, there are many who are obsessed with joining the club of owners who own one millionth of the BTC supply.
“It’s getting harder to join the 21 BTC Club,” explains a web portal called “21-btc.club”.
Why did Satoshi choose the 21 million pension cap?
The reasons Satoshi Nakamoto chose the 21 million supply limit may have been deliberate for several reasons. However, according to an email between Mike Hearn and Nakamoto, the inventor of the Bitcoin network chose the 21 million limit number to match the M1 money supply of fiat currencies such as the euro and the US dollar. In 2008, the M1 money supply was roughly 21 trillion when Nakamoto published the white paper.
“I wanted to choose something that had prices similar to existing currencies, but without knowing the future it’s very difficult. I ended up picking something in the middle, ”Nakamoto said in the email to Hearn.
Satoshi Nakamoto added:
If Bitcoin remains a small niche, it is worth less per unit than existing currencies. If you imagine it being used for a fraction of the world trade then there are only 21 million coins for the whole world so it would be worth a lot more per unit.
The white paper’s math also shows that the 21 million number fits perfectly with some of the interesting design patterns in the software. For example, the 21 million number is an integral part of the block reward halving, along with the 10 minute average time to mine a BTC block. The rewards are also cut in half every 210,000 blocks mined, and currently miners are receiving 6.25 BTC per block.
The total value of the Bitcoin network subsidy (Bitcoin Block Rewards) can be expressed in the equation shown above. Block reward epochs (210,000 blocks) are consistently split in half until they end after approximately 32 Bitcoin reward halves.
Interestingly, the smallest unit on the Bitcoin network is a single satoshi, or 0.00000001 BTC. PhD student Christian Seberino stated in 2018 that Satoshi probably chose the 21 million to “include floating point arithmetic”.
Floating point arithmetic.
Seberino says that while BTC’s supply limit seems arbitrary, the reasons Satoshi chose the number are pretty reasonable.
“It helps to avoid errors on most computer systems and is probably sufficient for all kinds of transactions everywhere,” emphasized Seberino. “Floating point arithmetic is a type of math that computers use to process decimal places. Decimal places are often represented with 64 bits, with one bit denoting the sign, 11 bits an exponent and 52 bits a fraction. “
The paper written by Seberino adds:
To avoid rounding errors, it is often a good idea to avoid integers that cannot be represented using only the fraction bits. To be particularly secure, it can be helpful to leave a fraction bit unused. In terms of 64-bit decimal places, this would limit integers to 51 bits. The maximum integer that can be represented with 51 bits is just over 2,100 trillion.
We honestly don’t have a solid answer as to why Nakamoto chose the 21 million mark, and he could have gotten insights into some numerological concepts that we don’t know about. The 21 million clubs, whether they hold a single coin or a total of 21 Bitcoins, will likely continue to grow over time and even change hands across generations.
Every time Bitcoin (BTC) rises by $ 50,000, holders of 21 BTC will see an additional $ 1 million in wealth growth. Some would say that if they are interested in carrying prosperity into the future, it is not too late to join the clubs.
What do you think of the 21 million bitcoin club and the reasons why Satoshi Nakamoto chose this number for the supply limit? Let us know what you think on this matter in the comments section below.
Tags in this story
$ 1 million, 21 Bitcoin, 21 million, 21 million Club, 21 trillion 2008, 21-btc.club, 210,000 blocks, Bitcoin (BTC), Bitcoiners, BTC, BTC 21 million, Christian Seberino, floating point arithmetic, M1 Supply, Mike Hearn, one millionth, Pete Rizzo, Satoshi Nakamoto, supply cap, supply limit
Photo credits: Shutterstock, Pixabay, Wiki Commons, Cryptoart.com, Alix Branwyn, Christian Seberino,
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