Behind Bitcoin’s rally is a simple fact: Supplies are limited
Live MintBitcoin investors celebrated last week after the price of the world’s largest cryptocurrency hit $100,000 for the first time. The computer code behind bitcoin imposes a hard cap of 21 million bitcoins. Most analysts say it is unlikely that such a change could ever happen—especially since lifting the cap above 21 million could depress the price of bitcoin, by opening the door to a larger supply, and that would hurt the very same bitcoin insiders who would need to approve the change. In the years since, various developments have made bitcoin an even scarcer commodity than Nakamoto intended, with its real circulating supply unlikely to reach the full 21 million. If the inventor of bitcoin is dead, as some crypto researchers believe, then about 12% of the ultimate bitcoin supply of 21 million bitcoins is either lost or stuck in inaccessible “Satoshi wallets."