Bitcoin Q&A: What happens to our bitcoins during a hard fork?

What do we do with our bitcoins during a hard fork? Where do we store them? Are they safe? A hard fork (planned, accidental, or as a network-based attack) is “a permanent divergence from the previous version of the blockchain, and nodes running previous versions will no longer be accepted by the newest version.” Hard forks in Bitcoin have so far not happened often or on a planned basis, because they have monetary consequences. If a hard fork does happen, your keys will control value (i.e. coins) on both chains because they have the same ancestry. It does mean you have “twice as many coins,” but not in the way you think — more than likely, they will be worth half as much or less. Ponzi schemes and inflation. Bitcoin is designed to be a resilient, self-healing, anti-fragile system, especially when it is being attacked all the time.

If you directly control the private keys to your bitcoins, you’re fine —
your coins aren’t being invalidated or going anywhere. When the hard fork happens, you can just decide which chain you want to continue with. Wait until things clarify.

If you don’t control the private keys to your bitcoins (ex. on an exchange), move them to address that you control. If you don’t, whoever controls your bitcoins will be deciding for you, and not all exchanges/ wallets will be supporting both sides of the fork.

This is part of a talk which took place at the JW Marriott Sahar (International Airport) on March 26th 2017 in Mumbai, India: https://www.townscript.com/e/bitcoin-talk-by-the-world-famous-andreas-antonopoulos-203132

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Introduction to Bitcoin – https://youtu.be/l1si5ZWLgy0
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Blockchain for Beginners – https://youtu.be/i9nUMvpT2rM
Embrace the Good, Reject the Fear – https://youtu.be/38U0BQQLzK0
Are chain splits a governance failure? – https://youtu.be/2pJEEVEmEVw
The dangers of hard forks in protocol evolution – https://youtu.be/vxEHRvhJKvA
Hard forks and the cultural mulligan – https://youtu.be/KT-7APasANI
Hot vs. cold wallets – https://youtu.be/Aji_E9sw0AE
Divisibility and deflationary monetary policy – https://youtu.be/xhLgxX_wU6E
Who determines the value of bitcoins? – https://youtu.be/DucvYCX1CVI
How to get people to care about security – https://youtu.be/Ji1lS9NMz1E

Andreas M. Antonopoulos is a technologist and serial entrepreneur who has become one of the most well-known and well-respected figures in bitcoin.

Follow on Twitter: @aantonop https://twitter.com/aantonop
Website: https://antonopoulos.com/

He is the author of two books: “Mastering Bitcoin,” published by O’Reilly Media and considered the best technical guide to bitcoin; “The Internet of Money,” a book about why bitcoin matters.

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MASTERING BITCOIN, 2nd Edition: https://amzn.to/2xcdsY9

Translations of MASTERING BITCOIN: https://bitcoinbook.info/translations-of-mastering-bitcoin/

THE INTERNET OF MONEY, v1: https://amzn.to/2ykmXFs

THE INTERNET OF MONEY, v2: https://amzn.to/2IIG5BJ

Translations of THE INTERNET OF MONEY:
Spanish, ‘Internet del Dinero’ (v1) – https://amzn.to/2yoaTTq
French, ‘L’internet de l’argent’ (v1) – https://www.amazon.fr/Linternet-largent-Andreas-M-Antonopoulos/dp/2856083390
Russian, ‘Интернет денег’ (v1) – https://www.olbuss.ru/catalog/ekonomika-i-biznes/korporativnye-finansy-bankovskoe-delo/internet-deneg
Vietnamese, ‘Internet Của Tiền Tệ’ (v1) – https://alphabooks.vn/khi-tien-len-mang

MASTERING ETHEREUM (Q4): https://amzn.to/2xdxmlK

Videography: Zebpay Bitcoin India
Music: “Unbounded” by Orfan (https://www.facebook.com/Orfan/)
Outro Graphics: Phneep (http://www.phneep.com/)
Outro Art: Rock Barcellos (http://www.rockincomics.com.br/)

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