BIP-110 Enforcing Branch Hits Roadblock After Two Blocks

BIP-110, a proposal aimed at enforcing certain rules on the Bitcoin network, has stalled after producing only two blocks. The block number at which this occurred is 961,633, and it happened after the mandatory signaling period began at block 961,632 on Saturday. Only 51 out of the preceding 2,016 blocks, or 2.53%, signaled support for BIP-110.

The proposal's approach, according to its supporters, involves nodes rejecting blocks that do not signal through version bit 4, while ordinary Bitcoin nodes accept both signaling and non-signaling blocks. This may seem contradictory, but it is a deliberate attempt to address certain issues on the network. However, the enforcing branch must mine through the remainder of the 2,016-block adjustment period before its difficulty can adjust.

Michael Saylor, Strategy executive chairman, expressed his support for BIP-110's objectives while criticizing its approach, stating that it threatens Bitcoin's neutral rules and consensus. Adam Back, Blockstream CEO, also voiced concerns about the potential damage to Bitcoin's credibility and the risk of making certain unspent transaction outputs unspendable.

The gap between the enforcing branch and the non-enforcing chain has widened to 88 blocks, with the latter advancing to block 961,721. The BIP-110 monitor shows that Roughnecks, a pseudonymous mining group, produced the first two blocks using Ocean's Decentralized Alternative Templates for Universal Mining (DATUM) mining protocol.