Bitcoin Cash
Forked August 1, 2017 to raise the block size limit to 8 MB. Born from the big-blocker camp.
Forked from Bitcoin
Bitcoin Cash (BCH) was created on August 1, 2017 when miners and developers who believed Bitcoin's block size was too restrictive hard-forked at block 478,558. The fork removed SegWit's witness structure and implemented an 8 MB block size limit, arguing that on-chain scaling was essential for peer-to-peer cash.
The split was the climax of years of debate. The 2015 CoinWallet spam attack had demonstrated mempool congestion; the Hong Kong and New York agreements attempted compromise; but when SegWit gained momentum through BIP 91 and UASF pressure, Roger Ver, Jihan Wu (via Bitmain), and the Bitcoin ABC development team pushed the fork forward.
BCH inherited Bitcoin's transaction history up to the fork point. Holders of BTC at block 478,558 received an equal amount of BCH. The chain later increased its block limit further and removed the unconfirmed transaction chain limit, prioritizing low-fee payments over full-node accessibility.
Outcome
Survived as a distinct chain with its own ecosystem, but never displaced BTC as the market's definition of 'Bitcoin.' Further split in 2018 when Bitcoin SV forked away.
Key Figures
Key Blocks
Primary Event
Bitcoin Cash Hard ForkRelated Events
Bitcoin Cash Hard Fork
Contentious fork creates Bitcoin Cash at block 478,558.
UASF Movement Gains Momentum
Users threaten to reject non-SegWit blocks.
BIP 91 Locks In — SegWit Path Cleared
Miners signal overwhelming support for SegWit activation.
Bitcoin SV Fork
Craig Wright's chain splits from Bitcoin Cash.