Bitcoin rates surpass Ethereum as halving expectations grow

Over the past four days, Bitcoin transaction fees have surpassed those of Ethereum, according to data from Cryptofees, reflecting a significant shift in the cryptocurrency landscape.

This increase in Bitcoin rates is largely attributed to the growing anticipation surrounding the upcoming halving and the Runes upgrade, a change that is catching the attention of investors.

On April 18, Bitcoin’s total fees amounted to $6.81 million, surpassing Ethereum’s $5.04 million. Bitcoin miners also raised $7.47 million in fees, surpassing Ethereum stakers who earned $7.31 million on April 17.

This trend continued over the previous few days, with Bitcoin miners receiving $9.98 million and $5.91 million on April 15 and 16, respectively, surpassing Ethereum’s fees by $3.5 million and $ $1.1 million respectively.

Ethereum x Bitcoin

However, Ethereum still maintains a slight edge in 7-day average fees at $8.02 million compared to Bitcoin’s $7.45 million.

The rise in Bitcoin fees coincides with the expected halving on April 20, which will reduce mining rewards from 6.25 BTC to 3.125 BTC. With only around 900 BTC mined daily currently, miners will have to rely on higher fees and increases in the price of Bitcoin to compensate for reduced revenue.

Additionally, the introduction of Runes, a new Bitcoin token standard scheduled to launch during the halving, is also driving the rise in rates. Runes are designed to compete with Ordinals by offering a simpler way to create fungible tokens on Bitcoin, appealing to memecoin enthusiasts and other community audiences.

With the recent decline in BRC-20 token prices, investors are increasingly interested in Runes tokens. The increase in fees can also be attributed to the growing popularity of Runestones, the most traded NFT collection at the moment, surpassing even the top Ethereum collections.

These changes reflect a dynamic scenario in the cryptocurrency market, with Bitcoin gaining prominence and rising expectations amid preparations for the long-awaited halving.