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On Nov. 28, 2012, Bitcoin underwent its first halving at block 210,000. This event halved the block reward from 50 BTC to 25 BTC. Crypto ranking platform CoinGecko took to X to share this milestone as Bitcoin's historic first halving event marked its 12th anniversary.
The halving mechanism, built into Bitcoin's code by its pseudonymous founder Satoshi Nakamoto, is scheduled to occur every four years, or every 210,000 blocks. This process continues until the maximum supply of 21 million Bitcoins is reached.
Exactly 12 years ago today, the 1st #Bitcoin halving took place, reducing the block reward from 50 to 25 $BTC.
— CoinGecko (@coingecko) November 28, 2024
The next halving event is expected to occur in April 2028. Happy halving anniversary, everyone! pic.twitter.com/QUPtDuSXjy
The first halving was an important milestone for the Bitcoin network. At the time, Bitcoin was still in its early stages, with a small network of enthusiasts and miners. Bitcoin's price on the day of its first halving was roughly $12.20. Despite initial fears about its impact on miners' revenue, the halving event eventually fueled Bitcoin's price rise.
In the months following the first halving, Bitcoin's price rallied, hitting above $1,000 by the end of 2013.
Bitcoin's most recent halving occurred on April 19, 2024, resulting in a block reward of 3.125 BTC. The next halving is expected to take place in April 2028, reducing the block reward to 1.5625 Bitcoin. The final halving is projected to happen in 2140, when the maximum supply of 21 million Bitcoin is expected to be reached.
Bitcoin price action
Bitcoin resumed a climb toward $100,000 after an earlier drop this week, topping $97,000 during yesterday's trading session.
The digital asset gained the most in more than two weeks on Wednesday, reaching $97,386, before falling to $95,612 at press time, after touching intraday highs of $96,676 in early Thursday trading.
Bitcoin came within $300 of the historic $100,000 threshold on Nov. 22 before losing approximately $9,000 in the days that followed. The token peaked at $99,728 on Friday before declining over the next four days.
Bitcoin plunged as low as $90,682 on Tuesday before rebounding.
Part of Bitcoin's early dip this week was caused by profit-taking as the price approached a historic milestone, as well as by macroeconomic concerns.