Bitcoin Hard Fork Launches Empty on September 1, Ignored by Miners and Exchanges

On September 1, developer Luke Dashjr activated a Bitcoin hard fork that replaces the SHA‑256 mining algorithm with BLAKE2b. The change was intended to allow ordinary computers to mine, but the new chain launched with almost no hashpower and was largely ignored by the broader Bitcoin ecosystem.

Technical change and its impact

The fork implements BIP‑110, which removes non‑financial data from Bitcoin blocks and swaps the proof‑of‑work algorithm. Because BLAKE2b is not compatible with the ASIC hardware that secures the main Bitcoin network, existing mining rigs could not contribute to the new chain, causing hashpower to drop to near zero shortly after launch.

Community response

Most miners, exchanges and traders treated the split as a non‑event. Blockstream CEO Adam Back summed up the outcome in a brief statement on X: “Live by the fork, die by the fork.” The original Bitcoin network continued to produce blocks without interruption, and its price hovered around $76,942, down about 1.33% over 24 hours.

Market activity

No major exchange listed the forked coin. A small beta platform opened deposits under the ticker BTCB2, where the highest bid reached $82 and the lowest ask was $190, indicating an extremely thin market and a spread of over 130%.

Historical context

This is not the first attempt to launch a BIP‑110 fork. A similar chain in August died after only two blocks, and mining pool OCEAN faced criticism for routing customer hashpower to that chain without clear consent.

Current status

Despite the lack of support, Dashjr continues to promote the fork as the “genuine” Bitcoin, claiming the BTC ticker now belongs to the BLAKE2b chain. Chain data, however, shows that the original Bitcoin network remains dominant.