Nearly ninety percent of all Bitcoins have been mined
Nearly ninety percent of all Bitcoins have been mined
Although the latter form of protection hasn't proven to be particularly effective so far, it's unclear what Nakamoto had in mind for the digital currency when it was first envisioned.
Despite this, as of this week, 18.9 million Bitcoins had been mined, accounting for 90 percent of the total supply of the cryptocurrency. What happens after that? In the near future, there won't be much to report.
The Bitcoin network was also built in such a way that the final coin will not be mined until the year 2140, according to the latest estimates. In other words, while the first 90 percent of the universe was created in less than 12 years, the remaining 10 percent will arrive in approximately 120 years.
Additionally, we must consider the fact that an estimated 20% of all Bitcoins that have been mined will most likely be lost to time in perpetuity. Many factors contribute to this, including forgotten passwords, misplaced hard drives, death, and so on and so forth. However, once they've been depleted, they're no longer available (although replacements can be mined or "printed," theoretically increasing the value of the remaining coins in circulation).
That is, of course, assuming that Bitcoins continue to be valuable in the long run. With so much change in the space in just 12 years, it is nearly impossible to predict with any degree of certainty what the market will look like in 100 years.
