The Bitcoin network has achieved a significant milestone with over 65 million Ordinals inscriptions, just days before the highly anticipated Bitcoin halving event.
According to data from Dune, the 65 million mark was reached on April 11, less than one year and three months since the launch of Ordinals in January 2023.
Ordinals are the first version of nonfungible tokens (NFTs) on the Bitcoin blockchain. Unlike most popular NFT collections that store their metadata on centralized servers, Ordinals exist solely on the Bitcoin blockchain, which eliminates additional vulnerabilities.
This achievement comes just before the Bitcoin halving, which is scheduled to occur on or around April 19. The halving will reduce block rewards from 6.25 Bitcoin (BTC) to 3.125 BTC.
So far, Ordinals have generated more than $458 million in network fees for Bitcoin miners, providing crucial support for mining firms as the halving approaches.
The milestone of 65 million Ordinals inscriptions signifies the growing demand for block space on the Bitcoin network and highlights the need for additional layer-2 networks for Bitcoin. Mithil Thakore, CEO of Velar, stated that this demonstrates the demand for BTCFi (Bitcoin decentralized finance) and the necessity for Bitcoin to match the innovation of Ethereum-based DeFi in the future.
With the current adoption rate, BTCFi has the potential to provide similar advancements in decentralized finance as seen on the Ethereum network, according to Nash Lee, co-founder of MerlinSwap.
As the halving draws near, experts predict that Bitcoin mining profitability may not necessarily decline, and the industry remains optimistic about the future of the Bitcoin network.