Connect with us

Crypto

What is bitcoin halving and when will the next one be?

Published

on

What is bitcoin halving and when will the next one be?

Bitcoin is surging after a rollercoaster few months after Donald Trump’s speech at a major cryptocurrency summit.

Trump spoke at the Digital Asset Summit (DAS) in New York on Thursday and bitcoin, by far the largest cryptocurrency, recovered much of its losses from recent months.

Bitcoin went over $100,000 (£77,200) for the first time in December 2024 but has since crashed down to $79,000 (£61,000) amid wider fears of economic turmoil caused by the Trump administration.

But ahead of Trump’s speech, the currency climbed back up to $86,000 (£66,400).

President Donald Trump hosted the White House Digital Assets Summit earlier this month. (AP)

President Donald Trump hosted the White House Digital Assets Summit earlier this month. (AP)

Speaking via video link from the White House Trump promised to make the US a bitcoin “superpower” and the “undisputed crypto capital of the world.”

Advertisement

He highlighted his administration’s actions on loosening regulations on the crypto industry, including ending what he called “operation chokepoint 2.0”, which saw federal agencies encouraging banks to not operate in risky sectors, particularly the crypto industry.

Trump said the operation went too far and acted as a form of “lawfare” against the industry.

The president has also instituted the US government’s Crypto Federal Reserve which will hold certain cryptocurrencies when they are acquired by state operations rather than sell them.

Despite the losses of recent months bitcoin has been on an incredible run in recent years after hitting a low of $16,000 (£12,300) in 2022. A lot of the recent gains have been associated with an event known as the Bitcoin halving that happened on 20 April 2024.

Halving is an event automatically triggered by the bitcoin network, which is designed to prevent inflation in the cryptocurrency but it can also trigger large price rises.

Advertisement

The halving happens roughly every four years and after each halving the following one to two years often see bitcoin’s price explode.

Bitcoin hit $100,000 last year. (Getty)Bitcoin hit $100,000 last year. (Getty)

Bitcoin hit $100,000 last year. (Getty)

Aaron Peak, personal finance expert at credit reference company CredAbility, said: “Bitcoin is notoriously volatile: prices can surge or crash unpredictably, so investors should always be cautious.

“Bitcoin’s price has been on a rollercoaster recently, and we’ve seen some major price swings in recent months.”

Bitcoin halving reduces the rewards of mining the cryptocurrency by 50%.

Crypto miners use high-end computing rigs to perform calculations and are rewarded with bitcoin but after each halving, the reward decreases.

Advertisement

Miners complete calculations required to verify transactions, using computers to make guesses to solve the puzzle and the first to solve it adds a new block to the blockchain – a digital ledger that records and verifies transactions across a network of computers.

The dates of the halvings are not set, rather they occur every 210,000 blocks that are mined.

Aaron Peak, personal finance expert at credit reference company CredAbility said: “Right now, miners – who verify bitcoin transactions – earn 6.25 bitcoins for each new block they add to the blockchain.”

“After the next halving, their reward will drop to 3.125 bitcoins. This reduces the supply of new coins, which can affect bitcoin’s price.”

Bitcoin halving performs several important functions, restricting supply and limiting inflation, which helps to maintain the cryptocurrency’s value.

Advertisement

Peak explains: “Halving is important because it slows down how quickly new bitcoins are created. Historically, bitcoin halving has led to price increases. When fewer new bitcoins enter the market, but demand stays the same (or grows), the price often rises.

3d illustration A lot of bitcoins Cryptocurrency Gold Bitcoin BTC Bit Coin. Close-up of bitcoin coins, Blockchain technology, bitcoin mining concept.3d illustration A lot of bitcoins Cryptocurrency Gold Bitcoin BTC Bit Coin. Close-up of bitcoin coins, Blockchain technology, bitcoin mining concept.

Bitcoin halving can restrict supply and limit inflation. (Getty)

“It’s a bit like gold, if mining gold became twice as hard overnight, but people still wanted it, the price would likely go up. However, past performance doesn’t guarantee the same outcome every time, so there are no certainties.”

The next bitcoin halving event is expected to happen in 2028, but it all depends on how quickly miners create new blocks, Peak explained.

Peak said: “It will happen after another 210,000 blocks have been added to the blockchain, which usually takes around four years.

“This happens because bitcoin has a fixed supply – only 21 million bitcoins will ever exist. The process is built into bitcoin’s code to control inflation, a bit like how central banks manage the money supply, except no one can change bitcoin’s rules.”

Advertisement

Bitcoin halvings are expected to continue until 2040.

Crypto

Capital B Completes Capital Increase and Acquires 44 Additional Bitcoin, Now Holds 2,888 BTC

Published

on

Capital B Completes Capital Increase and Acquires 44 Additional Bitcoin, Now Holds 2,888 BTC

France-based Capital B, also known as The Blockchain Group, announced the completion of an At-the-Market (ATM) capital increase and warrant issuances on March 23, 2026. This financial restructuring involves partnerships with TOBAM and UTXO Management to support the firm’s specialized focus on data intelligence and decentralized technology.

The company successfully acquired 44 bitcoin ( BTC) for $3.12 million (€2.7 million), bringing its total holdings to 2,888 BTC with an acquisition value of $309.34 million (€267.1 million). Key performance metrics reveal a year-to-date BTC yield of 0.72% and a total BTC gain of 20.4 tokens for the Paris-listed entity.

🧭 FAQs

Where is Capital B headquartered and listed? The company is based in Puteaux, France and listed on the Euronext Growth Paris exchange.

What is the total bitcoin holding for the group? The group and its Luxembourg subsidiary now hold a total of 2,888 BTC.

Who participated in the recent capital raises? TOBAM and UTXO Management provided the funding through ATM contracts and share subscription warrants.

Advertisement

Does this transaction require a local AMF prospectus? This specific financial transaction does not require a prospectus subject to approval by the AMF.

Continue Reading

Crypto

Fintech Stock SoFi Technologies Just Proved That the Ultimate Cryptocurrency Has a Clear Use Case | The Motley Fool

Published

on

Fintech Stock SoFi Technologies Just Proved That the Ultimate Cryptocurrency Has a Clear Use Case | The Motley Fool

If a company, particularly one that operates in the otherwise boring and slow-moving financial services industry, has seen its revenue soar 133% in three years, it’s clearly doing something right. That’s the best way to describe SoFi Technologies (SOFI +1.48%). The digital banking superstar ended 2025 with almost 13.7 million customers.

Product innovation has been a key pillar of SoFi’s success, and in recent months, this core competency has been on full display. This fintech stock just proved that the ultimate cryptocurrency has a clear use case.

Image source: Getty Images.

Giving its members another tool to better handle their finances

SoFi tapped Lightspark, a payments start-up founded in 2022 by former Meta Platforms executive David Marcus, to enable cross-border payments for its customers. Lightspark provides the back-end infrastructure, while SoFi Pay users can leverage this exciting capability.

This feature leans on the Bitcoin (BTC +3.99%) Lightning network, a Layer-2 protocol that allows for fast and cheap transactions to occur.

Advertisement

What stands out with this is that SoFi doesn’t necessarily need to be bullish on Bitcoin. The management team simply picked what it thought was the most capable technological solution that could rapidly integrate and scale up. Since it was introduced in August last year, SoFi Pay now facilitates remittances to over 30 countries.

At a high level, the person sending the money and the person receiving the money deal with their own respective local currencies. Underneath the hood, SoFi and Lightspark handle the conversion to and from Bitcoin.

Besides how easy the feature is to use, SoFi could save its customers a lot of money. In 2024, $138 billion of remittances were sent from the U.S. to India, for example. Money-transfer services charge average fees that can be well above 5% of the value being sent.

Bitcoin Stock Quote

Today’s Change

(3.99%) $2717.74

Current Price

Advertisement

$70898.00

Propelling the top digital asset to its next stage of development

This product introduction shows how innovative SoFi is, as the popular banking platform isn’t afraid to try new things with the top priority being to better serve its members.

Advertisement

Additionally, this move is a clear signal to the rest of the world that Bitcoin has a use case in the finance world. Looking ahead, it will be important to pay attention to any commentary SoFi’s leadership team provides on adoption trends. Other banks might choose to do something similar.

I believe we’re now witnessing the early innings of Bitcoin’s next evolutionary phase to becoming a medium of exchange. It has been a wonderful investment, with a trailing 10-year return of 18,000% (as of March 18). While I expect strong gains to continue, the crypto asset’s ability to transfer value around the globe is impossible to overstate and will be critical for its long-term viability.

Should Bitcoin be leaned on more for its utility value, it provides durable demand. This can support a higher price in the future.

Continue Reading

Crypto

The Best Crypto to Buy for Long-Term Investors Right Now | The Motley Fool

Published

on

The Best Crypto to Buy for Long-Term Investors Right Now | The Motley Fool

Despite its position as a multitrillion-dollar asset class, the cryptocurrency industry is still trying to prove itself as a viable place to park capital. Volatility remains a challenge. And there is no shortage of critics who still believe these digital assets serve no purpose.

Even after considering these arguments, investors might want to test the waters for the sake of boosting the returns of their portfolios. Here’s the best cryptocurrency that long-term investors should buy.

Image source: Getty Images.

Start with the world’s prime digital asset

According to coinmarketcap.com, there are tens of millions of different cryptocurrencies out there that make up this relatively new asset class. That huge figure can distract investors who are serious about where to allocate their hard-earned savings. In this situation, simplicity is key. Stick to the proven crypto that has developed a dominant position: Bitcoin (BTC 0.57%).

Bitcoin has been around for more than 17 years, ever since its first block was mined in January 2009. This makes it the first cryptocurrency. Its market cap of $1.4 trillion (as of March 18) gives it almost 60% share of the entire industry.

Advertisement

And the performance is phenomenal. In the past 10 years, Bitcoin’s price has skyrocketed 18,000%. It has been one of the best assets that anyone could have owned this century.

You might be wondering what problem Bitcoin solves. It was created to be a solution to the current monetary system, which has its own issues. These center on persistent currency debasement and monumental, ever-increasing amounts of sovereign debt.

Bitcoin’s absolute scarcity, shown by its hard supply cap of 21 million units, is its most compelling feature. It’s also not controlled by a single entity, is completely decentralized, and has never been hacked.

Bitcoin Stock Quote

Today’s Change

(-0.57%) $-390.91

Current Price

Advertisement

$68392.00

Expect the volatility to continue, but the gains can be massive

Because Bitcoin is an emerging monetary asset, the volatility isn’t going away just yet. Over time, the price swings have gotten less extreme. However, the ups and downs are something long-term investors can’t avoid. This isn’t unique to Bitcoin. Some of the most impressive technology stocks over the past couple of decades, like Nvidia, Amazon, and Netflix, were extremely difficult to hold on to during times of intense volatility.

Advertisement

As was the case with those disruptive businesses, patient investors will be rewarded in this situation. Bitcoin is currently trading 41% below its record price from about five months ago. But it has historically always recovered to reach newer all-time highs. Its fundamentals, particularly around network security, transaction volume, and adoption trends, are all in strong shape.

Investors who can buy Bitcoin and hold for 10 years are setting themselves up for success.

Continue Reading

Trending