Bitcoin's daily transaction fees have fallen by over 80% since April 2024, leading to concerns about the network's long-term security. Nearly 15% of blocks are now mined with minimal or no transaction fees. As block rewards have decreased to 3.125 BTC per block post-April halving, miners are increasingly reliant on a shrinking fee market. This decline in fees is attributed to reduced onchain activity and a shift in BTC trading to offchain mechanisms such as spot Bitcoin ETFs. A potential solution is emerging in the form of BTCfi, which leverages Bitcoin as the base asset for financial applications that could drive transaction activity and fee revenue. By establishing Bitcoin as a programmable component in financial systems, BTCfi might help revive the onchain ecosystem, which has been struggling alongside alternatives like Solana. Industry experts emphasize the need for a robust fee market and sustained throughput to maintain the integrity and security of the Bitcoin network.

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