- Coinbase just rolled out a new short infomercial about the upcoming Bitcoin (BTC) halving.
- This demonstrates the increasing purchasing power of the digital asset at every halving cycle.
The New Bitcoin Halving Ad by Coinbase
With roughly three days to go until the historic Bitcoin halving, anticipation is now running high for this momentous occasion in the cryptocurrency space. Unlike the first three that happened in 2012, 2016, and 2020, the next one is expected to be the biggest so far due to the heavier involvement of traditional finance (TradFi) in its ecosystem, mainly thanks to the arrival of spot Bitcoin exchange-traded funds (ETFs) in the US.
To further fuel anticipation for this important affair, Coinbase just released an infomercial displaying the different purchasing power of Bitcoin over time. It begins with a box of pizza on the carrier of a motorcycle to provide a visual representation of the time when 1 BTC was already enough to buy a whole pizza in 2012. Its price eventually increases each halving every four years until it’s enough to topple and bury the motorcycle beneath a mountain of pizza boxes.
In the end, the narrator reminds us that each halving marks a tighter supply and a higher value for Bitcoin. For added context, the event is essentially a deflationary mechanism built within the Bitcoin blockchain that cuts its mining reward by half at each cycle. The cycle goes on until all 21 million BTC has been acquired.
A Recap of the Bitcoin Halving Cycles
Bitcoin started with a 50 BTC reward on January 9, 2009. The Genesis Block and earliest blocks were mined by none other than Satoshi Nakamoto, the pseudonymous creator of Bitcoin.
In the first halving on November 28, 2012, mining rewards were cut down to 25 BTC per block. The second halving on July 9, 2016, brought them down to 12.5 BTC per block. The third cycle where we are right now rewards miners with 6.25 BTC per block. In the upcoming fourth halving around April 20, this will turn to 3.125 BTC per block.
Due to the higher awareness by the public and the increased institutional adoption of Bitcoin, the next one is expected to propel Bitcoin to all-new highs. Some analysts are wagering up to $100K per BTC this year up to $200K by 2025.
A Callback to the Bitcoin Pizza Day
The Coinbase ad somehow offers a subtle callback to the iconic Bitcoin Pizza Day, which is now celebrated annually every 22nd of May. On the same date in 2010, Bitcoin marked its first actual use as a medium of exchange when programmer Laszlo Hanyecz traded 10,000 BTC for two large Papa John’s pizzas. During that period, these were valued at a total of $41 while the overall purchase was only worth $25.