Bitcoin (BTC) Fees Set New Highs in 2023, Here’s Explanation Behind Surge

According to IntoTheBlock, an on-chain analytics start-up, Bitcoin fees, which refer to the amount of BTC paid to miners, to include the transaction in the next block of the blockchain, reached new highs in 2023.

Per IntoTheBlock, average daily fees have increased 35 times since December 2022, with Bitcoin (BTC) miners profiting handsomely as transaction costs have risen.

2023 Review: Bitcoin fees reached new highs in 2023 driven by inscriptions. Average daily fees climbed by 35x relative to December 2022 pic.twitter.com/PEGuXrTzzM

— IntoTheBlock (@intotheblock) December 28, 2023

Ordinals, a protocol that allows users to store non-fungible tokens (NFTs) on the Bitcoin blockchain as inscriptions, is primarily responsible for the spike.

Bitcoin Ordinals, a mechanism for generating non-fungible tokens (NFTs) known as inscriptions, launched in January, bringing the NFT and smart contract narratives to the Bitcoin network.

According to the most recent data published by Dune Analytics on Dec. 26, users have a cumulative total of 51,720, 061 Ordinals inscriptions.

Not only has Bitcoin achieved new highs in network fees, but Santiment believes that 2023 will be remembered as one of the greatest performing years of the century, accounting for various main sectors.

Santiment points out that Bitcoin and Ethereum are still within striking distance of breaking through one-and-a-half-year highs set just three weeks ago.

Bitcoin has rallied amid speculation that the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission is nearing approval of an exchange-traded fund that will invest directly in the largest token.

Investors are aiming for a Jan. 10 deadline for the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission to decide whether to approve a spot Bitcoin ETF. Grayscale is requesting approval to transform its Bitcoin Trust, the world’s largest, into an ETF.

Bitcoin was barely 0.04% higher at the time of writing, trading around $43,088 after recovering from Tuesday’s loss.

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