Understanding Bitcoin's Total Supply and Its Impact on Value

The scarcity of Bitcoin is one of its most notable features, and it's a key factor in its value appreciation over time. This scarcity is ensured by the total supply cap, which is hardcoded into the blockchain and can never be changed.

The block reward for mining new coins is halved approximately every four years through a process called halving. This reduces the amount of new Bitcoins entering circulation, slowing down the issuance rate over time.

Currently, about 19.99 million Bitcoins are in circulation, but this number fluctuates constantly as new blocks are added to the blockchain.