The upcoming Bitcoin halving event continues to attract massive global interest-based on queries logged on the search engine Google. Data compiled by Finbold.com shows that over the last one year, searches related to the halving have shot up by at least 669 percent.
From the data, the first notable spike in ‘Bitcoin halving’ was during the first week of March 2020 when the popularity score was 64. In the second week of last month, the popularity slightly dropped to 43 before embarking on an upward trajectory. In the third week, the searches grew by 30.2% to 56 and later hit 74.
By the first week of April, the popularity score was at its peak of 100, a growth of about 35% from the previous week. During a similar period last year, the popularity score stood at 5, the lowest point over the last year. Since last year, the interest in the event has been fluctuating. By projection, the popularity is set to remain at the peak in the second week of April.
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Google Trends reports the interest in a particular search term by scoring search volumes on a scale of 0-100. The score is determined relative to the highest point on the chart for a given region and time. The searches are based on different languages and regions.
The spike in interest corresponds to Bitcoin’s rally from $6,400 in December to $10,500 by mid-February. That suggests that the halving hype and fear of missing out (FOMO) could be the reason behind the increased searches.
Nonetheless, this correlation has become inconsistent after Bitcoin traders crashed the asset’s price abruptly to almost $3,800 in March in the wake of broader panic in global markets due to the Coronavirus pandemic.
Swiss nationals show the most interest in Bitcoin halving
The data also highlights the countries with a lot of interest in the phrase Bitcoin halving. Switzerland tops the chart with the highest interest in the halving event with a score of 100 while the Netherlands is second with a score of 84. Estonia has also witnessed an increased interest in Bitcoin halving with a popularity score of 84 followed by Slovenia at 73.
More interest in the event also came from Singapore (72), Luxembourg (72), St Helena (69), Venezuela (61), Cyprus (58), and Austria (56).
During the halving, the number of generated Bitcoin rewards per block will be halved. With the halving, the 12.5 coin reward mined for every Bitcoin block will drop to 6.25 coins. That will reduce the asset’s inflation rate by 50%. Hence, various investors agree that the halving event will push BTC price higher since decreased supply mostly boosts the price.
The next Bitcoin halving will occur next month and analysts and commentators believe that more investors will join the Bitcoin market anticipating huge returns from the event. Notably, the constant increase in searches is somehow linked to continuous news coverage of the event as it approaches.
Morgan Creek Digital’s Mark Yusko and Galaxy Digital’s Mike Novogratz are some of the prominent crypto investors who have mentioned ‘halving’ in recent interviews. That has increased interest in the term as the experts forecasted how it would affect the BTC price.
The Halving’s Effect on Bitcoin Price
Most experts believe that Bitcoin will set a new all-time high price after the halving event. One such expert is PlanB, the founder of the Stock-to-flow Bitcoin model, who believes that the asset will rise to between $55,000 and $110,000 after the halving.
On the other hand, Seattle-based hedge fund Strix Leviathan said that there is no definite proof that halving events are decisively bullish for crypto:
“Bitcoin’s supply schedule is the major selling point by crypto-evangelists… Market participants have been anticipating this halving and all future halvings since 2009 when there was only one participant. Previous research Strix Leviathan conducted suggests that the impact of halving events are indiscernible from broader market sentiment.”
Whatever the outcome, after the halving, Bitcoin’s inflation will be lower than that of the US dollar’s target rate of 2%.
