Adam back against BIP-110 Ordinals fix
Blockstream CEO Adam Back has opposed the proposal to reduce Bitcoin as mere “spam”, warning that the move could do more harm than good to the integrity of the network.
The Bitcoin Reform Proposal (BIP-110) was proposed by fake Bitcoin developer Dathon Ohm in December. About 7.5% of Bitcoin nodes – all of which are Bitcoin Knots customers – have indicated they are ready for BIP-110.
The proposal seeks to temporarily reduce how much data can be stored in Bitcoin transactions to reduce the “data abuse” of images, videos, audio files and other data that flood the network.
Back agreed that bitcoin should act as a “money of voice” and said in a post to X on Sunday that the consensus-level change was not worth it, saying BIP-110 would be an “attack” on bitcoin's credibility as a store of value and a secure financial network.
“It's a cynical group that doesn't have a consensus to push for change,” he said, adding that spam is “just annoying” and poses no security threat to the network.
BIP-110 is only a temporary fix to reduce random data, intended to give the Bitcoin community 12 months to evaluate its impact while developers work on a longer-term solution.
BIP-110 began taking market share from Bitcoin Knots in late October when Bitcoin Core developers removed the 80-byte limit on the OP_RETURN function, gaining more support from validators running Bitcoin Knots.
After the controversial OP_RETURN function sparked a debate within the Bitcoin community about what transactions should be allowed on the network, the market share of Bitcoin nodes fell from 98% to 77.2%.
He is one of many who oppose removing the 80-byte limit on the OP_RETURN function, calling it “no place in the time chain” as mere spam.
However, he pointed out that a solution like BIP-110 has the potential to block the fund by making certain unused transaction outcomes (UTXOs) unexpendable.
Ohm acknowledges that blocking funds is theoretically possible, but adds that “this idea is too painful to affect any known use cases.”
Related: Bitcoin owners are being tested as inflation eases: Pompliano
Supporters of cashless transactions, such as Bitcoin Ordinals leader Leonidas, note that Ordinals and the Runes ecosystem have contributed more than $500 million in transaction fees to bolster Bitcoin's security — a growing concern as mining block subsidies halve every four or so years.
Added Bitcoin Ordinals activity.
However, data from Dune Analytics shows that ordinal text payments were bringing in less than $10,000 a day for Bitcoin miners by the end of 2025, leaving them to rely on non-financial transactions for income.
Two years ago, regular activity peaked, with bitcoin miners collecting nearly $10 million in payouts on December 16, 2023.
Since then, fees have been trending downwards, except for a few short-term spikes.
Magazine: Has Hong Kong Funds Killed Bitcoin? Bithumb's ‘phantom' BTC: Asia Express
