What is Bitcoin SV (BSV)? An Overview

Bitcoin SV (BSV) is a cryptocurrency forked from the Bitcoin Cash (BCH) blockchain following a hard fork in 2018. The name “Bitcoin SV” stands for “Satoshi’s Vision,” which denotes the mission of BSV to fulfil Satoshi Nakamoto’s original vision.

At the time of writing, there were three Bitcoin versions which all profess to be the one true Bitcoin. This can result in confusion among cryptocurrency investors.

Here in our Bitcoin SV Wiki, we’ll address this issue, by clarifying the differences between Bitcoin (BTC), Bitcoin Cash (BCH), and Bitcoin SV (BSV) once and for all.

A closer look: Read our comparison guide between Bitcoin and Bitcoin SV.

Understanding the Bitcoin and Bitcoin SV Backstory

Bitcoin (BTC) was released in 2009, by a person using the pseudonym, Satoshi Nakamoto. At this time, the person using the Satoshi Nakamoto pseudonym made Bitcoin opensource. Because Bitcoin is open source, anyone can legally copy, change, and reuse, some or all of the software which Bitcoin uses to operate.

Shortly after Bitcoin’s release, Satoshi Nakamoto disappeared. He did so without leaving guidance concerning how Bitcoin should be developed further.

Independent developers, therefore, began only implementing changes to Bitcoin’s core software, when all were in unanimous agreement that changes would be beneficial.

Bitcoin Forking

In 2017, some developers wished to see changes made to Bitcoin. However, they failed to gain unanimous approval among the Bitcoin development community to implement these.

To address this problem, developers who wished to implement changes cloned the open source Bitcoin codebase. They then released a copy of Bitcoin called Bitcoin Cash (BCH) with the upgrades which they believed were necessary.

In 2018, a group of developers led by a man claiming to be Satoshi Nakamoto made a new copy of Bitcoin. This group argues that neither Bitcoin nor Bitcoin Cash is what Satoshi Nakamoto intended for Bitcoin. Their copy of Bitcoin is, therefore, known today as Bitcoin Satoshi’s Vision (Bitcoin SV).

More on the BCH fork: Read our guide for more details.

Is Bitcoin SV The Real Bitcoin?

Bitcoin (BTC) is the version of Bitcoin which appeared on the cryptocurrency market in 2009.

By comparison, Bitcoin Satoshis Vision and Bitcoin Cash have only been in circulation for one and two years respectively. The Bitcoin Cash and Bitcoin SV price is, therefore, lower than that of Bitcoin. Bitcoin is also the most dominant cryptocurrency in terms of real-world acceptance by businesses and payment merchants.

A Brief Bitcoin SV Wiki – Why Does Bitcoin SV Have Value?

Bitcoin Satoshis Vision is the most controversial cryptocurrency currently on the market. This controversy centres on the fact that Bitcoin SV claims to be developed by Satoshi Nakamoto himself. However, several researchers believe that this is not the case.

Several inconsistencies surround narrative that BSV’s lead developer really is Satoshi Nakamoto. For a full overview of these, click here.

Because of controversy surrounding Bitcoin Satoshis Vision, the BSV price performed poorly between November 2018 and April 2019. However, in the following May, BSV prices started making significant gains.

• Craig Wight, the person assuming the pseudonym Satoshi Nakamoto, filed a copyright claim on the original Bitcoin White Paper with the U.S. Patents Office.
• Bitcoin SV developers and promoters have accused Bitcoin and altcoin developers of fraud, by using the Bitcoin codebase without the express permission of Craig Wright.

Takeaways

In short, Bitcoin SV is a hard fork of the original Bitcoin (BTC). Rather than continue to hash it out in an attempt to reach a compromise and prevent further division, as many other cryptocurrencies have done in the past, BSV’s developers chose to fork the original Bitcoin Cash blockchain and create an entirely new cryptocurrency with its own set of rules.

However, some investors believe that this controversy could actually work in their favour as it deters other miners from joining the network. 

By enthusiastically embracing controversial rules such as Satoshi’s vision, some investors are hoping that this could lead to more rewards for miners who decide to join the network and mine blocks, especially if much of the mining power is concentrated on BSV.