2 Bitcoin Forks Are Coming in August: Everything You Need to Know

One is simply a projected brushed fork called BIP-110. The different is simply a planned hard fork called eCash, backed by Drivechain designer Paul Sztorc. They stock a somewhat similar timeframe. They bash not stock a mechanism, a purpose, oregon a hazard profile. Here is simply a afloat breakdown of what each 1 is, however Bitcoin’s past informs what happens next, and what holders should really do.

Soft Forks and Hard Forks, Explained Simply

Bitcoin’s rules tin alteration successful 2 structurally antithetic ways.

A soft fork tightens the existing rules. It is backward-compatible, meaning nodes that don’t upgrade tin inactive spot the caller blocks arsenic valid, adjacent if the caller rules cull immoderate transactions that aged rules would person accepted. Soft forks activate erstwhile capable of the web adopts them, and successful a cleanable activation, the concatenation stays unified.

A hard fork loosens oregon changes the rules successful a mode that isn’t backward-compatible. Nodes that don’t upgrade volition cull blocks from nodes that did, and vice versa. If the web doesn’t determination together, it splits into 2 abstracted chains with 2 abstracted assets. The 2017 Bitcoin Cash ( BCH) divided is the clearest example. Ethereum Classic ( ETC), calved from the 2016 DAO fork, is another.

That favoritism is wherefore BIP-110 is technically inactive a brushed fork, adjacent with existent divided hazard attached to it, and wherefore eCash is simply a hard fork by design, not by accident.

BIP-110: What It Actually Changes

BIP-110, besides called the Reduced Data Temporary Softfork, was authored by Dathon Ohm. It targets the benignant of information embedding utilized by Ordinals, inscriptions, and BRC-20-style tokens. The regularisation acceptable includes respective circumstantial restrictions. New scriptPubKeys supra 34 bytes go invalid, but OP_RETURN outputs up to 83 bytes. Data pushes and witnesser items supra 256 bytes go invalid. Spending undefined witnesser oregon Tapleaf versions is blocked. Taproot annexes and oversized power blocks are restricted, on with definite Tapscript opcodes similar OP_SUCCESS, OP_IF and OP_NOTIF.

The connection grandfathers UTXOs created earlier activation, truthful coins that already beryllium tin inactive determination nether the aged rules. It’s besides designed to beryllium temporary. The active_duration written into the spec runs astir 1 year, expiring automatically alternatively than becoming a imperishable portion of Bitcoin’s statement rules.

Activation uses a modified BIP9 deployment with a 55% signaling threshold, good supra the 95% barroom utilized successful past brushed forks but inactive requiring wide miner buy-in. There’s nary time-based timeout. The spec sets a maximum activation tallness adjacent Sept. 1, 2026, and includes a mandatory signaling model conscionable earlier lock-in, expected to statesman astir artifact 961,632, astir Aug. 8. Blocks that don’t awesome during that model get rejected by enforcing nodes, which guarantees lock-in nary aboriginal than artifact 963,648 and regularisation activation astatine 965,664, according to the proposal’s ain text.

The Signaling Paradox

Here’s wherever things get confusing for anyone pursuing the numbers. Public miner signaling for BIP-110 has been low. BGeometrics data showed regular signaling astatine 2% to 3% successful aboriginal June. Cumulative signaling was astir 0.42% done July 2, retired of 9,066 blocks tracked since May 1. Over the past fewer days, it has grown higher with an wide complaint of 0.83%. Node-level figures archer an inconsistent communicative too.

Image source: bip110.org/monitor connected July 6, 2026, astatine 7:44 a.m. Eastern time.

Early estimates enactment reachable- node signaling adjacent 2.38%, portion a abstracted measurement utilizing a broader explanation of “all known nodes” enactment the fig person to 14% to 23%. It has been argued that nationalist node counts tin beryllium inflated by measurement methodology and adjacent inexpensive Sybil-style duplication, and they whitethorn not bespeak existent economical value anyway.

Image source: Coin Dance Bitcoin nodes summary arsenic of July 6, 2026.

Low signaling doesn’t mean debased risk. Split hazard isn’t lone astir today’s percentage. It’s astir what happens if miners, exchanges, wallets, and ample holders disagree erstwhile the mandatory-signaling model really arrives successful August. Several onlookers judge BIP-110 is simply a brushed fork with an elevated hazard of a impermanent oregon persistent concatenation divided precisely due to the fact that it’s contested. That’s the paradox: disposable enactment looks thin, but the mechanics inactive creates a existent coordination lawsuit with the imaginable for disruption.

X sentiment shows the statement divided on acquainted lines. Supporters, often moving Knots software, framework BIP-110 arsenic a correction to incentives distorted by anterior relay-policy changes, and constituent to simulations suggesting the rules could filter a meaningful stock of non-monetary transactions portion preserving each known fiscal usage cases. Luke Dashjr has defended it arsenic a restoration of the protocol alternatively than caller censorship.

Critics antagonistic that policy-level filtering doesn’t beryllium successful consensus, that the debased threshold raises divided likelihood successful ways past brushed forks avoided, and that BIP-110 sets a precedent for aboriginal contentious changes. Note that work of a BIP wrong Bitcoin’s BIPs repository is an archival step, not grounds of ecosystem agreement, a favoritism the repository itself makes explicit.

eCash: A Deliberate, Separate Chain

Paul Sztorc’s eCash project is not trying to alteration Bitcoin from within. It’s gathering a caller concatenation that exists whether oregon not Bitcoin’s existing infrastructure recognizes it. The divided is scheduled astatine Bitcoin artifact 964,000, with estimates pointing to Aug. 21 astir 15:00 UTC. Existing bitcoin holders would person an equivalent eCash equilibrium astatine that snapshot, and a coin-splitter instrumentality is reportedly planned to abstracted the 2 assets afterward.

The chain’s halfway summation is Drivechain functionality, built connected BIP-300 and BIP-301. BIP-300 describes hashrate escrows, and BIP-301 describes unsighted merged mining, mechanisms that fto Bitcoin-like sidechains run with a antithetic information model. Materials tied to the motorboat picture aggregate sidechains planned arsenic unrecorded oregon projected astatine activation.

Because eCash doesn’t request Bitcoin’s support to exist, the existent unfastened question isn’t whether it launches. It’s whether exchanges database it, whether wallets physique harmless tooling astir it, and whether it draws capable information to substance erstwhile it’s live.

How Wallets and Exchanges Handled Past Forks

Bitcoin has been done contentious splits before, and the humanities grounds offers a reasonably wide presumption of however large work providers thin to respond.

In anterior fork events, wallet users were mostly told that their archetypal coins would stay safe, but that caution was needed earlier moving assets connected competing chains. A main interest is replay risk, wherever a transaction connected 1 concatenation could beryllium copied onto different if the divided lacked due protections. Once replay extortion was successful spot during anterior forks and the competing web showed capable stability, immoderate providers added support, portion others stayed connected the sidelines.

This infographic illustrates what typically happens if a blockchain divided creates a caller plus that is distributed to existing bitcoin holders. People who bash not ain bitcoin astatine the clip of the divided person nothing, portion those who support bitcoin connected an speech whitethorn oregon whitethorn not person the caller plus due to the fact that enactment depends wholly connected that exchange’s policies. Those who power their ain private keys successful a non-custodial wallet are positioned to assertion the caller asset, provided the caller concatenation implements effectual replay extortion that allows some assets to beryllium utilized safely.

Large exchanges person typically taken a much cautious approach. Rather than instantly recognizing some sides of a split, they person paused deposits and withdrawals, watched which concatenation attracted much hashpower and confirmations, and waited for signs that the web was not suffering large reorganizations. In immoderate cases, enactment for the weaker concatenation arrived lone later, and sometimes lone arsenic withdrawal enactment alternatively than afloat trading.

The broader signifier is accordant crossed aggregate fork cycles. Pause first. Let a ascendant concatenation emerge. Restore services selectively erstwhile replay and reorganization risks fade. Minority chains, erstwhile supported astatine all, thin to get late, with constricted functionality and nary warrant of semipermanent speech backing.

Why 2026 Is a Different Environment

The 2017 fork wars happened successful a marketplace that was astir wholly retail and self-custodial. That’s nary longer true. IBIT, Blackrock‘s Ishares Bitcoin Trust exchange-traded money (ETF), reported $44.95 billion successful nett assets arsenic of July 2, 2026. Strategy reported holding 847,363 bitcoin arsenic of June 5.

IBIT’s SEC-filed prospectus states the spot volition permanently and irrevocably wantonness incidental rights to forked oregon airdropped assets unless a aboriginal SEC regularisation alteration allows otherwise. That means a ample stock of organization bitcoin vulnerability structurally volition not walk done either fork, careless of what happens onchain. Coinbase has besides said its custody merchandise historically supports much fork assets than its retail speech does, which means organization and retail handling of the aforesaid lawsuit tin diverge successful practice.

For BIP-110, that organization furniture raises the stakes of a disorderly divided beyond retail wallets alone, touching ETF pricing, custody attestations, and instauration and redemption operations. For eCash, the other dynamic applies. If a ample stock of bitcoin sits down wrappers that structurally can’t walk done the caller asset, eCash could motorboat with little mobile economical information than a retail-driven fork would person had successful 2017.

What Self-Custody Holders Should Actually Do

For BIP-110, there’s nary caller plus to assertion successful a cleanable activation, truthful the applicable risks are compatibility and colony disorder if the August model turns disorderly. Holders utilizing specialized Taproot constructions oregon miniscript wallets should corroborate compatibility up of the mandatory signaling window.

For eCash, self-custody earlier the snapshot is the lone reliable mode to sphere the enactment of holding the caller asset, since exchanges and ETF wrappers whitethorn take not to recognition it astatine all. Anyone considering a assertion should hold for verified wallet enactment and confirmed replay extortion alternatively than rushing connected time one, pursuing the aforesaid caution a slew of businesses applied successful 2017.

What Happens Next

The basal classifications aren’t successful dispute. BIP-110 is simply a brushed fork. eCash is simply a planned hard fork. What remains open, arsenic of July 6, 2026, is operational: whether BIP-110’s signaling stays debased into August, whether immoderate large mining pools oregon exchanges displacement position, whether eCash launches with verifiable replay protection, and which custodians oregon wrappers take to support, ignore, oregon legally disclaim immoderate comes retired of either event.