There are numerous versions of Bitcoin in the cryptocurrency world today. Most of them are ultimately irrelevant, although there is one exception in the form of Bitcoin Cash. Whether or not 0xBitcoin will make a meaningful impact in this regard remains to be seen. It is designed to be the first mineable ERC20 token, although it will raise a lot of questions.
Why 0xBitcoin?
That is the main question people will ask themselves, for rather obvious reasons. Another currency or token abusing the Bitcoin brand will always raise a lot of suspicions. That’s especially true when that currency isn’t using Bitcoin’s blockchain, but rather that of Ethereum. Moreover, an ERC20 token with the Bitcoin name in it is often a sign of a scam, but it seems 0xBitcoin shouldn’t be classified as such just yet.
How Does it Work?
Most people are familiar with how ERC20 tokens work. They are not designed to be mined, but are usually distributed through an airdrop or initial coin offering. In the case of 0xBitcoin, neither of these things will occur. Instead, the team is introducing a mineable ERC20 token, in order to combine the scarcity and fair distribution model of Bitcoin with the speed of the Ethereum ecosystem.
On the supply front, 0xBitcoin is very similar to the Bitcoin which people know and love (or hate). There will be 21 million tokens, but they will be mined through a Proof of Work smart contract function. There is a diminishing reward that’s dependent on the supply of tokens in circulation. Mining 0xBTC requires users to run a mining program, but it uses the CPU cycles rather than a graphics card or ASIC to do so.
However, various open-source miners for both Nvidia and AMD cards have been released already. Whether or not this will give users an advantage is unknown, but it is still an interesting development. Very few tokens have been mined to date, and it will be interesting to see whether there will ever be any real interest in mining this particular ERC20 token.
The Road Ahead
While it is commendable to see enthusiasts take a completely different approach when it comes to cryptocurrencies and ERC20 tokens, it remains to be seen if there is a future for tokens such as 0xBitcoin. At this point, the general interest seems rather low, but things are always subject to change in this industry.
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