The 18 millionth bitcoin has been mined recently together with another 80 thousand coins, thus rapidly reducing the number of remaining bitcoins. However, in this case, the concept of rapidness is rather controversial as it will take another 120 years to mine the rest of the remaining 3 million bitcoins. There is no shortage in coins so far, and the price is unlikely to jump in the nearest future given that around 20% of mined bitcoins have disappeared over the years. Many bitcoin holders have lost access to their wallets right at the beginning. Therefore, the 18 millionth bitcoin is just another landmark. On the other hand, the next major event will definitely affect the price of the currency. In May 2020, the process of halving is expected when the reward for miners will be reduced by half. This process takes place every 4 years starting from 2012, followed by 2016, and with 2020 up next. According to most experts, halving will finally boost the price of bitcoin. The G7 statement (USA, Japan, Germany, France, Great Britain, Italy, and Canada) acknowledges that cryptocurrencies have the potential to resolve some of the existing issues in the market although not without some risks. “Central banks, individually and collectively, will assess the relevance of issuing central bank digital currencies (CBDCs) in view of the costs and benefits in their respective jurisdictions,” the report states.
