Bitcoin developer Paul Sztorc has announced a new hard fork plan that could create a fundamental change to the network.
This upgrade, called “eCash,” is scheduled to launch in August, and the project aims to create a Layer 1 network as an alternative to Bitcoin, along with seven Layer 2 scaling solutions (Drivechains).
According to information shared by Sztorc, after the hard fork, existing Bitcoin ($BTC) holders will be able to exchange their assets for eCash at a 1:1 ratio. It was stated that the new chain’s Layer 1 node software will be largely a copy of the Bitcoin Core client, while continuing to use the SHA-256 algorithm. However, it was also announced that the initial difficulty will be reduced to increase mining participation.
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Another notable aspect of the project is the integration of seven Layer 2 solutions aimed at increasing transaction capacity. This structure is planned to support both higher transaction throughput and optional on-chain privacy features.
Sztorc argued that eCash differed from forks like Bitcoin Cash, which emerged in 2017, stating that the project aimed to “solve Bitcoin’s long-standing problems.” However, this approach sparked disagreements within the community.
One particularly controversial proposal was to “manually redistribute” a portion of the approximately 1.1 million $BTC believed to belong to Satoshi Nakamoto to early participants. Some Bitcoin supporters strongly opposed this plan, arguing that it would constitute interference with the assets on the original chain.
*This is not investment advice.