Bitcoin Halving
Halving · Halvening
The rule that cuts the new bitcoin miners earn for each block (the block reward) in half every 210,000 blocks, roughly every four years.
Simple explanation
Background: The halving is written into Bitcoin's own code, so it works the same everywhere. Korea's won exchanges (Upbit, Bithumb, Coinone and Digital X, formerly Korbit) don't need to do anything for it, but Korean traders watch it closely.
Miners add a new block to Bitcoin's chain about every 10 minutes, recording transactions, and earn newly created bitcoin (the block reward) plus transaction fees. The block reward is the only way new bitcoin comes into existence.
Bitcoin's code has contained a rule from the start that halves the block reward every 210,000 blocks. At about one block every 10 minutes, that is about four years. Because of this rule, total supply stops just short of 21 million, and the last bitcoin is expected to be mined around 2140.
The reward started at 50 BTC in 2009 and fell to 25 BTC in 2012, 12.5 BTC in 2016 and 6.25 BTC in 2020. The fourth halving, in April 2024 at block 840,000, cut it to 3.125 BTC. The next comes at block 1,050,000, expected around 2028, when it falls to 1.5625 BTC.
A halving is set by block number, not by date, so the actual day can come earlier or later than estimates depending on how fast blocks are found. As of 2026, more than 20 million bitcoin (over 95% of the total) have been mined, and new supply adds about 0.8% a year.
The halving matters because the flow of new bitcoin into the market halves overnight. Miners' block reward halves too, so miners with high costs sometimes switch off. Mining difficulty adjusts automatically every 2,016 blocks (about two weeks) to bring block times back to around 10 minutes.
Big rallies came within a year or two after earlier halvings, so some say "halving means a rise". But each halving's timing is known years ahead, and prices move on many things: interest rates, ETF flows, regulation and sentiment. In 2024 the US approved spot Bitcoin ETFs in January, and Bitcoin set a record high in March, before the halving. A halving does not guarantee a price rise.
On the kimchi premium: in March 2024, ahead of the halving, when Bitcoin first passed ₩100 million in Korea, Korean buying pushed Bitcoin's kimchi premium to around 10%. The halving does not set the premium, but when interest runs high, demand piling into Korea can move it sharply. Overseas, the futures funding rate serves as a similar gauge of market heat.
A halving only cuts the block reward. It does not split the coin (a hard fork) or give holders new coins (an airdrop). If you hold Bitcoin on a Korean exchange such as Upbit or Bithumb, there is nothing to do and your balance stays the same. Some other coins, such as Litecoin, have similar halving rules.
Example
Block reward now 3.125 BTC × about 144 blocks a day (one every 10 minutes) = about 450 BTC of new bitcoin a day
After the next halving 1.5625 BTC × 144 blocks = about 225 BTC a day
Over a year: about 164,250 BTC → about 82,125 BTC
At an assumed ₩100,000,000 per bitcoin, new supply a day = 450 × ₩100,000,000 = ₩45 billion → ₩22.5 billion after the halving
※ Example numbers, for illustration only
See it on CoinGaja
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