Bitcoin Cash

What is Bitcoin Cash?

Bitcoin Cash is a cryptocurrency that split from Bitcoin in August 2017 over how to scale. It keeps Bitcoin's 21 million coin limit and proof-of-work mining but allows much larger blocks so that more transactions fit in and fees stay low. Its supporters focus on using it as everyday peer-to-peer cash.

What it’s used for

People use BCH for low-cost payments, tipping and transfers, including through crypto payment processors that accept it. Since 2023 the chain has supported CashTokens, native tokens and NFTs, and smart-contract tools that a small developer community builds on. Much BCH activity is still trading and holding.

Role of the BCH token:

Evidence of real use

• The May 15, 2026 'Layla' upgrade added high-precision arithmetic and optimized virtual machine limits for more powerful BCH smart contracts. Source
• A March 2026 joint SEC and CFTC interpretation named Bitcoin Cash (BCH) as an example of a digital commodity. Source
• Bitcoin Cash adopted an adaptive block-size limit algorithm (ABLA) that took effect in May 2024. Source

How Bitcoin Cash works

Bitcoin Cash shares Bitcoin's transaction history up to August 1, 2017. Back then, some users and miners wanted to raise Bitcoin's 1 MB block limit so more payments could fit in each block, while others preferred off-chain solutions. The big-block side split off and became Bitcoin Cash. Anyone holding bitcoin at the time of the split received an equal amount of BCH.

BCH works much like Bitcoin. Miners use SHA-256 proof of work to add a block about every 10 minutes and earn new coins plus fees, and you control coins with a private key. The key difference is capacity: BCH began with 8 MB blocks, moved to 32 MB, and since 2024 uses an adaptive limit that can grow automatically with demand, keeping fees typically well under a cent.

Bitcoin Cash upgrades on a fixed yearly schedule each May, after proposals are debated publicly and locked in months ahead. Recent upgrades added CashTokens in 2023, the adaptive block limit in 2024, and in May 2026 the 'Layla' upgrade, which brought high-precision math, loops and reusable functions to BCH's scripting language. These let developers build more advanced contracts directly on the base chain.

Key moments

1. 2017Bitcoin Cash splits from Bitcoin on August 1 with 8 MB blocks.
2. 2018A dispute over protocol changes splits the network again in November, creating Bitcoin SV.
3. 2020A further split over a proposed developer-funding rule creates what is now eCash.
4. 2023CashTokens add native tokens and NFTs to Bitcoin Cash.
5. 2024The adaptive block-size limit takes effect in May; the April halving cuts the reward to 3.125 BCH.
6. 2026The 'Layla' upgrade activates on May 15, expanding smart-contract capabilities.

Supply

Bitcoin Cash keeps Bitcoin's 21 million coin cap and halving schedule. Miners earn newly created BCH, and the reward halves roughly every four years; the April 2024 halving cut it to 3.125 BCH per block. There is no premine beyond the coins inherited from Bitcoin's history and no fee burn.

Risks to understand

• Security budget: BCH shares the SHA-256 algorithm with Bitcoin but has far less hashrate, so in theory a large Bitcoin miner could redirect power to attack it.
• Adoption: despite low fees, everyday payment use of BCH remains limited, and stablecoins now compete for the same role.
• Community splits: BCH has already split twice, and future disagreements could divide users and liquidity again.
• Confusion with Bitcoin: sending BCH to a BTC address, or the reverse, can result in lost or hard-to-recover funds.
• Price volatility: BCH has fallen more than 90 percent from its early peak and can move sharply.

Last reviewed October 4, 2026 by The Crypto Guide editorial team. Utility Lens ratings are editorial judgments, not investment advice. Market data from CoinGecko. Spot an error? Request a correction.