Just like we did back in 2018, we’re offering customers the option to trade the two tokens involved in the upcoming Bitcoin Cash fork before the fork occurs on November 15, 2020. This allows traders to get early access to these tokens and show their support. Read on for more information on pre-fork trading.
Why is this Bitcoin Cash fork happening?
Like many blockchain protocols, Bitcoin Cash has one single protocol but many independent teams responsible for building the various client implementations of that protocol. There are two sides to the current debate: (1) the team behind the full node client, ABC, are in favor of Infrastructure Funding Plan (IFP) activating; and (2) the teams behind full node clients including Bitcoin Verde, Bitcoin Unlimited, and Bitcoin Cash Node are against the activation of IFP. While ABC is historically the dominant client in terms of hash rate, the majority of hash rate is pointing at the Bitcoin Unlimited client at the time of this posting.
What are BCHA and BCHN?
As mentioned above, Bitcoin Cash ABC (BCHA) and Bitcoin Cash Node (BCHN) are the tokens at the center of the debate about the upcoming Bitcoin Cash fork in November 2020.
What is pre-fork trading?
On November 7, 2018, we introduced the concept of pre-fork trading by providing our traders with the option to split their Bitcoin Cash (BCH) into BCHABC (the ABC team’s implementation of BCH) and BCHSV (the Satoshi Vision’s implementation of BCH) before the actual Bitcoin Cash fork occurred on November 15, 2018. This allowed traders to speculate on the outcome of the contentious fork and move their value to the chain that they believed to be most valid. Just like in 2018, we are offering pre-fork trading for Bitcoin Cash’s upcoming contentious fork.
What are the risks of pre-fork trading?
Trading in these tokens can be extremely risky so please trade at your own risk. While it seems highly likely that a contentious hard fork does occur on November 15, 2020, there is the possibility that a resolution is found and Bitcoin Cash proceeds as one single chain. If that occurs, the value of the abandoned fork could fall to zero and the value of the predominant fork should trend closer to the value of BCHABC prior to the fork.
How do I split BCHABC to BCHA and BCHN?
You can claim your BCHA and BCHN on Poloniex before the fork and trade those tokens in our pre-fork trading markets with the following steps:
- Split your BCHABH into BCHA and BCHN from within your Wallet. 1 BCHABC = 1 BCHA and 1 BCHN.
- Once you claim your BCHA and BCHN, you can trade them in our BTC and USDT markets. These markets are listed in our Innovation Zone under FORK.
- At any time, you can choose to convert your BCHA and BCHN tokens back to BCHABC from within your Wallet. To do this, you will need an equal amount of BCHA and BCHN. 1 BCHA and 1 BCHN = 1 BCHABC.
Will you continue to support both chains after the fork?
We will support both chains as long as they remain technically and economically viable after the fork.
Do I need to claim my BCHA and BCHN now?
You do not need to claim BCHA and BCHN or engage in pre-fork trading. Instead, you can choose to hold your BCHABC in your Poloniex wallet at the time of our fork snapshot and we’ll distribute any applicable forked assets after that.
What is expected to happen after the fork?
While there are many ideas out there, we cannot say for certain what will happen as a result of the Bitcoin Cash fork. As an exchange, we aim to remain neutral and empower our community to demonstrate their support through trading. You can follow the hash rate that each node currently has here.
What happens if BCHA or BCHN is not sustained after the fork and I have not merged back to BCHABC?
If you convert your BCHABC into BCHA and BCHN and then decide to not trade these assets, you would have the same amount of BCHABC as if there had not been a fork. If you trade after splitting your BCHABC and hold only the abandoned fork, you will ultimately end up with 0 BCHABC. This highlights the risk present in trading pre-fork assets, which you must assume when you split your BCHABC into BCHA and BCHN pre-fork.
What if the fork doesn't happen?
If the fork truly does not happen, it would be because one of the development teams (Bitcoin Cash ABC or Bitcoin Unlimited, Bitcoin Verde, and/or Bitcoin Cash Node) decided to abandon their position and revert to the other side. If that occurs, the value of the abandoned fork will trend towards zero and the value of the predominant fork should trend closer to the value of BCH prior to the fork.
Can I deposit and withdraw my BCHA and BCHN?
BCHA and BCHN are not able to be deposited or withdrawn before the fork. However, you have the option of merging your BCHA and BCHN into BCHABC and then withdrawing BCHABC from your Poloniex account.