Bitcoin SV (BSV)


Year	2018
Type	Hard fork from Bitcoin Cash (permanent chain split)
Status	Separate chain (not Bitcoin)

What it is

Bitcoin SV (“Satoshi’s Vision”) forked from Bitcoin Cash in November 2018 to pursue unlimited block sizes. It is two forks removed from Bitcoin (Bitcoin -> BCH -> BSV) and has no credible claim to the Bitcoin name.

Why it happened

A dispute within the Bitcoin Cash community over the November 2018 upgrade. The faction led by Craig Wright and Calvin Ayre wanted massive block sizes and claimed to be restoring Satoshi’s original design.

Why it is not Bitcoin

Two forks removed. BSV split from BCH, which itself split from Bitcoin. Each split moved further from Bitcoin’s consensus.
Built on false claims. Craig Wright, BSV’s primary advocate, claims to be Satoshi Nakamoto. UK courts have ruled against this claim. The broader Bitcoin and cryptography community rejects it.
Delisted from major exchanges. Binance, Kraken, ShapeShift and others delisted BSV, reflecting the industry’s assessment.
Centralized development. Driven primarily by Craig Wright and Calvin Ayre’s nChain, with minimal independent developer activity.
Negligible hashrate and adoption. A tiny fraction of Bitcoin’s network effects by every measure.

Key details

Forked from Bitcoin Cash at block 556,766 (November 15, 2018)
Initial block size: 128 MB (later removed limits entirely)
Led by Craig Wright (false Satoshi claim) and Calvin Ayre
Delisted from multiple major exchanges
Has produced blocks over 1 GB, but with minimal real economic activity

Lesson for Bitcoin

BSV demonstrates how chain splits can cascade, and how bad actors can exploit the open-source nature of Bitcoin to create misleading forks. The “Satoshi’s Vision” branding is a case study in using Bitcoin’s name and history to lend credibility to a project the community has rejected.