The first bitcoin upgrade in four years has just been approved by mining companies.
This is a rare moment of unanimity.
The upgrade is called Taproot and will take effect in November.
Advantages;
Greater privacy and efficiency.
“Taproot is important because it opens up a range of opportunities for entrepreneurs interested in expanding the usefulness of bitcoin,” said Alyse Killeen of Stillmark.
In contrast to the bitcoin upgrade in 2017, Taproot is receiving almost universal support.
What is changing
Bitcoin makeover is related to digital traces, which a person leaves in every transaction he makes.
Currently, cryptocurrency uses something called the “Elliptical Digital Signature Algorithm”, which is created by the private key that controls a wallet with bitcoin and ensures that the digital asset will only be used by the rightful owner.
The Taproot upgrade uses what is known as the Schnorr signature.
These are multiple signatures – digital footprints that are difficult to detect or decode, according to Alejandro De La Torre, vice president of Hong Kong-based Poolin.
In practice, this means greater privacy.
“You can hide who you are a little better,” said Brandon Arvanaghi, a former security engineer at the Gemini exchange.
Upgrading also makes smart contracts cheaper and smaller in terms of the space they take up in the blockchain.
