$670M Bitcoin Transaction Pays 26c Fees (Try That, Gold)

Many proponents of various altcoins make a big deal about Bitcoin’s supposedly high transaction fees. Admittedly the fees on Bitcoin are higher than they are on other blockchain-based digital currencies. However, so too is the level of security Bitcoin users can be assured of.

There Is No Other Way to Safely Send Hundreds of Millions for Less Than a Dollar

BeInCrypto has reported many times before about massive Bitcoin transactions with minuscule fees. In February, there was the example of a $424 million transaction that required just a 68c fee. Today’s mega-whale transfer trumps that though. As highlighted by cryptocurrency industry observer sunnydecree (@sunnydecree) in the following tweet, one Bitcoin user just sent a massive $670 million for just 26c.

Have you ever seen someone sending $670.000.000 worth of gold across the globe for 26 cents? I haven't. Buy #Bitcoin! pic.twitter.com/Di42UXVo2b

— sunnydecree (@sunnydecree) April 2, 2020

The unknown individual or company sent a total of 106,857.24571944 Bitcoin between two wallets at around 20:55 GMT on April 1. As the analyst points out, this would be impossible with the asset that many people compare Bitcoin with — gold. Recent gold repatriation efforts around the globe show the sheer commitment moving huge quantities of gold requires. As BeInCrypto reported earlier in 2020, recent years have seen the Netherlands, Turkey, Germany, and Poland all undertake vast logistics projects to shift their bullion. The operations themselves cost billions and take years to complete. Being a physical asset, gold needs guarding round the clock after it arrives at its destination — also at a considerable expense.

What About Another Cryptocurrency?

Proponents of other digital assets tend to argue that their chosen cryptocurrency is better than Bitcoin because it offers even lower transaction fees. However, this entirely misses the point. These so-called altcoins lack the kind of security that Bitcoin offers. With a network hashrate far greater than all other digital assets combined, there simply is no safer way to send that kind of money at such a low cost. It’s no coincidence that other networks don’t see such large transactions occurring on them with anywhere near the same frequency. There just isn’t the same confidence in the the security of altcoins. Despite the Bitcoin network not experiencing anything like the highest transaction volumes at the moment, the low fees for such huge transfers are certainly encouraging in terms of Bitcoin scaling. As BeInCrypto recently reported, shrinking transaction fees mean the network will possess more utility for more users, even when more people want to use the network. It’s also notable that Bitcoin is achieving this scale without compromise to its own decentralization.