Halving

An event in the lifecycle of certain cryptocurrencies, particularly Bitcoin, where the reward for mining new blocks is reduced by half. This event occurs approximately every four years or after every 210,000 blocks are mined. The purpose of halving is to control the supply of the cryptocurrency, making it scarcer over time and potentially increasing its value. For Bitcoin, the initial reward for mining a block was 50 BTC, which was reduced to 25 BTC after the first halving, 12.5 BTC after the second, and so on. Halvings will continue until the maximum supply of 21 million Bitcoins is reached, which is expected to occur around the year 2140. Halving events are significant in the cryptocurrency community as they impact the rate of new Bitcoin creation and can influence market dynamics and prices.