Too many Bitcoin addresses on few BTC

Bitcoin is for everyone, but not enough for everyone, due to the limited offer compared to the number of addresses. This is the conclusion of Anthony Pompliano.

38 million BTC addresses

According to crypto influencer Anthony Pompliano, there are 38 million BTC addresses with a balance greater than zero.

“This means that existing addresses cannot own 1 full BTC, let alone the remaining 7+ billion people worldwide.”

In principle, there are more addresses available than BTC. Bitcoin is based on an algorithm that allows the creation of only 21 million BTC. Due to halving and adjustments of mining difficulty, BTC production gradually slows down every 4 years. The last BTC will probably be mined in a hundred years, theoretically in 2140.

Its deflationary nature makes it a rare asset. Anthony Pompliano points this out:

“Already today, 38 million addresses would have to settle for just a fraction of BTC. But there are another 7 billion people in the world who would have to give it up if they wanted to own a BTC, because BTC is a rare asset. ”

Little HODLers vs whales

The point is that the vast majority of BTC holders are “small fish”. According to Bitinfocharts statistics, there are up to 19 million addresses, or more than half of the total, that contain 0 to 0.001 BTC. At present, they are between $ 0 and $ 63.

Another 24% of addresses have between 0.001 BTC or 0.01 BTC (between $ 63 and $ 630). Only 2% of active addresses have more than 1 BTC in their wallet. Today, anyone wishing to join this “club” would have to earn $ 63,000 to buy at least 1 BTC. It’s not exactly cheap.

BTC whales

More than 2,000 addresses boast ownership of between 1,000 and 1 million BTC. The richest address is Binance with 288,000 BTC. Among the richest is also the creator of BTC, Satoshi Nakamoto, whose wallets have been inactive for years and reportedly contain over 1 million BTC.

In any case, whales keep most of the BTC in circulation. It is probably those who have realized its potential as a store of value and not as a means of payment, as originally intended in the 2008 whitepaper.

This begs the next question: Is BTC really that decentralized? Obviously, it is concentrated in several wallets. Looking at these numbers, it seems that even if BTC actually achieves mass adoption, people will have to be content with what the whales have left behind.

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