Bitcoin Milestone: 20 Million Coins Mined but Availability Remains Limited

The mining of the 20 millionth Bitcoin has officially occurred, marking a significant milestone in the cryptocurrency’s history. While this achievement showcases the substantial amount of Bitcoin that has been mined since its inception in 2009, a large portion of these coins is permanently lost or inaccessible.

Key Takeaways

The 20 millionth Bitcoin was mined, leaving only 1 million coins left to be created.
Approximately 2.3 to 3.7 million Bitcoins have been permanently lost.
The remaining supply will take about 114 years to be fully released.
The next halving event will occur on April 11, 2028, reducing block rewards from 3.125 BTC to 1.5625 BTC.

Bitcoin

Major Achievement in Bitcoin Mining

On Sunday, Bitcoin reached a new landmark with the mining of its 20 millionth coin, an event that occurred exactly 17 years, two months, and one week after the first block of Bitcoin was mined back in January 2009. The final Bitcoin is anticipated to be mined sometime in the 2090s, with only small fractions of Bitcoin (satoshis) expected to be produced until around 2140.

Source: CloverPool

Foundry USA Mining Pool Hits a Milestone

The achievement of the 20 millionth coin was accomplished by the Foundry USA mining pool at block height 939,999, resulting in a reward of 3.125 BTC. This award aligns with the current payout level established by the April 2024 halving, which reduced the daily production of Bitcoin from 900 BTC to approximately 450 BTC.

The significance of hitting the 20 million mark indicates that 95.24% of all Bitcoins that will ever exist are now in circulation. The number highlights that for every 20 coins already mined, only one remains to be created, while the remaining 1 million Bitcoins are expected to take about 114 years to fully issue.

Source: CloverPool

The Challenge of Lost Coins

Blockchain analytics firms River Financial and Chainalysis point out that between 2.3 million and 3.7 million BTC are effectively lost forever, due to various reasons such as forgotten passwords, misplaced private keys, and early adopters who never transferred access to their wallets. Recent estimates suggest that roughly 1.8 million coins were lost during Bitcoin’s early years when the asset had low value and the storage options were not reliable.

Additionally, 230 BTC are permanently locked due to the original genesis block and early outputs that cannot be accessed. Therefore, the actual supply available for trading, selling, or holding is significantly lower than the total mined figure.

BTCUSD currently trading at $70,733. Chart: TradingView

As Bitcoin's supply is capped by the halving schedule, this reduction will also affect miners’ earnings over time. By the 2040s, daily Bitcoin issuance will drop below 30 BTC, and by the 2060s, it will decrease to under 2 BTC per day. This will make transaction fees the only source of income for miners, raising questions about their ability to secure the network sustainably.

Currently, Bitcoin trades around $69,282, representing a nearly 21% decrease year-to-date; however, it has shown a 3.44% increase over the past week despite ongoing economic uncertainty and geopolitical tensions in the Middle East. The next significant halving event is expected on April 11, 2028, which will further reduce the block reward from 3.125 BTC to 1.5625 BTC.

Featured image from Unsplash, chart from TradingView