Scarcity
A fixed maximum supply of 21 million Bitcoin, impossible to alter under the current protocol.
Definition
Scarcity is Bitcoin's fundamental monetary property: the protocol caps total issuance at 21 million BTC, with an issuance curve that halves at each halving and asymptotically ends around the year 2140. This programmed scarcity, verifiable by any node, is the core investment thesis of corporate treasuries: unlike fiat money, whose supply is discretionary and ever-growing, Bitcoin offers an asset with a transparent, non-negotiable monetary policy. Bitcoin's stock-to-flow ratio has exceeded gold's since the 2024 halving.
In Context
After the 2024 halving, Bitcoin's annual issuance is roughly 0.85% — lower than that of newly mined gold.
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