There are still a lot of unknown factors associated with the upcoming Bitcoin Cash hard fork. While miners clearly favor Bitcoin SV at this time, things may look a bit different where everything else is concerned. More specifically, without sufficient network nodes and economic support Bitcoin SV will not necessarily go anywhere anytime soon.
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Network Nodes Tell a Different Story
In the world of cryptocurrency, network nodes play an increasing role of importance. They ensure the blockchain is safe from harm at all times. Moreover, they are also responsible for broadcasting transactions to the miners, who will then validate them accordingly. Without sufficient nodes, network are at an increased risk of being disrupted in many different ways.
Bitcoin Unlimited (Status Quo)
The number of node operators who will not upgrade to the latest “rules’ has diminished significantly recently. Current statistics indicate just 3% of nodes will not upgrade, albeit that number may continue to decrease as time progresses. After all, it is not in anyone’s best interest to remain behind and cut off from the rest of the Bitcoin Cash network accordingly. There is also zero company support for these nodes at this time.
Bitcoin Unlimited
The “proper” version of Bitcoin Unlimited will remain an integral part of the network. Node operators compatible with the BUCash 1.5.0 implementation represent 73% of all current network nodes, which is fairly impressive. Company support for Bitcoin Unlimited sits at 72%, although that figure may fluctuate a bit in the coming hours and days.
Bitcoin ABC
Although Bitcoin ABC clearly lacks the network hashrate support to become the main chain, its node and economic support is pretty significant. Roughly 73% of network nodes are compatible with Bitcoin ABC, which is only to be expected. Company support also clearly favors Bitcoin ABC at this stage, even though the miners clearly disagree.
Bitcoin SV
Given the clear favoritism toward Bitcoin SV among miners, the rest of the network clearly disagrees in this department. In the world of Bitcoin SV, only 8% of the public nodes are compatible with the rules of this chain. That does not bode well for the future whatsoever, primarily because the lack of nodes can become a very big problem moving forward.
This creates a very interesting situation for this Bitcoin Cash hard fork. While having the miners on board will ensure Bitcoin SV will give the network a chance at succeeding, the lack of network nodes is problematic. Economic support for Bitcoin SV is also relatively low, at roughly 49%. Changing this situation will be problematic, although it seems things are slowly improving for Bitcoin SV in this regard.