The significant number of BRC-20 tokens minted through the Ordinals protocol has caused congestion on the Bitcoin network and led to a surge in transaction fees. This situation has sparked a debate among blockchain developers regarding how to address the on-chain frenzy. The bitcoin-dev mailing list, known for hosting discussions on Bitcoin development, has become the platform for this debate. Opinions within the community are divided on whether more drastic measures should be taken to control the sudden increase in BRC-20 mints.
The soaring transaction fees have forced some Bitcoin users in Africa to explore alternative payment options, including stablecoins. Additionally, cryptocurrency exchange Binance has announced its intention to integrate the Lightning Network, a “layer 2” scaling solution for Bitcoin. While the increased fees have been profitable for Bitcoin miners, they have created a conflict for advocates of a blockchain designed to be both a peer-to-peer payments network and censorship-resistant.
Ali Sherief, a member of the mailing list, expressed concern about the rising fees and their impact on real Bitcoin transactions. Sherief recommended addressing the issue of Ordinals token mints through the drafting and implementation of a Bitcoin Improvement Proposal (BIP) or by making changes to Bitcoin Core, the primary software for connecting to the Bitcoin network. However, not all members of the mailing list share this viewpoint. Michael Folkson, an organizer for the London Bitcoin Dev meetup group, argued that Bitcoin should maintain its current state, emphasizing that consensus rules are already established and the market should dictate outcomes. He cautioned against engaging in a game of constantly trying to address emerging use cases, as it could lead to a never-ending cycle of opposition.
The Ordinals protocol allows users to inscribe data onto the smallest units of Bitcoin, known as satoshis or “sats,” resulting in the creation of unique non-fungible tokens (NFTs). On March 8, a Twitter user named Domo utilized Ordinals to inscribe snippets of code, specifically JavaScript Object Notation (JSON) data, enabling the minting of an enormous number of fungible tokens. Many of these tokens have total supplies in the quadrillions, rendering them practically useless.
Sherief was quick to point out that Domo himself referred to his creation as “worthless.” In March, Domo tweeted, “These will be worthless. Please do not waste money mass minting.” CoinDesk attempted to contact Domo for comment on whether he still considers BRC-20s worthless, but there has been no response thus far.
