Bitcoin debate reignited with satoshi unit redefinition proposal

It’s a debate as old as Bitcoin itself: How can the world’s first cryptocurrency achieve true mass adoption? While the Bitcoin community focuses on improving user experience (UX), rolling out custody solutions, battling legislators, and onboarding institutions, core Bitcoin developer and CEO of Synonym John Carvalho has proposed a simpler solution: deprecate satoshis and remove the decimals to “reduce the cognitive load.”

Changing satoshi for bitcoin may improve the user experience

In a Bitcoin Improvement Proposal (BIP) released in December 2024, Carvalho argues that eliminating the term ‘satoshi’ and removing the decimal points by changing satoshi for bitcoin would have a dual benefit: making Bitcoin easier to understand and removing unit bias, both key to attracting new users.

Currently, one bitcoin is made up of 100 million tiny pieces called “base units” or satoshis, which cannot be divided further. Carvalho’s proposal suggests redefining “bitcoin” to refer to this smallest unit. Under this system, what we now call “1 bitcoin” would instead be referred to as “100 million bitcoins.”

For example, a transaction currently displayed as 0.00010000 BTC would become 10,000 bitcoins in the new system, and 10.23486 BTC would be displayed as 1,023,486,000 bitcoins, redefining the concept of bitcoin millionaires.

Bitcoiners are notoriously resistant to change

Bitcoin’s history is filled with contentious debates, from the block size wars to SegWit and the ongoing arguments over NFTs on the blockchain. Unsurprisingly, Carvalho’s proposal has met considerable resistance since its introduction at the end of last year. Podcast host Stephan Livera mocked the idea on X, likening it to calling each slice of pizza a whole pizza:

“Hey, I have this great idea! Instead of one pizza with eight slices, let’s call each slice a pizza. Just make sure when you go to order your pizza, you order eight pizzas now instead of one. Just my two pizzas.”

Viral Bits founder Daniel Sempere Pico joked:

“I love how triggered people get by your proposal,”

While other community members voiced concerns about changing the total supply from 21 million to 2.1 quadrillion bitcoins, seeing the original supply as a core principle of Bitcoin’s identity.

“Personally, I’m not interested in changing the supply from 21m to 2.1 quadrillion. In the infinite sea of shitcoins and the unlimited flood of fiat, 21 million bitcoin is a statement, a middle finger to monetary debasement.”

Make satoshi bitcoin again

There may be a slim chance that Carvalho’s proposal is growing on people, as he posted on X on April 25, 2025:

“It’s still a minority, but a lot more people are becoming interested in the idea of calling the base units of Bitcoin bitcoins, and removing the decimal.”

Carvalho appears to be on an all-out campaign, borrowing Trump’s MAGA slogan and filling his X page with pictures of well-known figures from the global economic community, including Satoshi, Klaus Schwab, and Ursula von der Leyen donning red caps with the slogan “Make Satoshi Bitcoin Again.”

Whether the proposal gathers more momentum remains to be seen. But the ongoing debate highlights how even the most minimal of adjustments could make Bitcoin more palatable to the masses.