Ethereum Foundation researchers warn that Bitcoin's fee structure could jeopardize its long-term security.

Gate News bot news, Ethereum Foundation researcher Justin Drake has warned about the long-term security of Bitcoin (BTC).

In a detailed article on May 29, he pointed out that the Bitcoin network's persistently low transaction fees could make it increasingly vulnerable to a 51% attack.

Drake believes that the fee structure of Bitcoin has failed to develop in sync with the halving schedule. Although the three halving events over the past eight years have reduced block rewards, the increase in transaction fees has not been sufficient to offset this decline.

According to its analysis, the transaction fees on the Bitcoin network currently account for only 1% of the total income of miners, lower than previous levels, hovering around the lowest level in 13 years (approximately 6.5 Bitcoins per day).

In light of this, Drake stated: "The security model of Bitcoin has collapsed. If Bitcoin is taken over, the consequences could ripple through the entire crypto ecosystem. Systemic risk cannot be ignored."

He also questioned the long-held assumption that fees would naturally increase and eventually replace block rewards.

On the contrary, he believes that fees are shrinking, and if miners can only rely on fees, their income could plummet by 100 times. This would reduce Bitcoin's hash power to 1% of its current level.

Drake stated: "This is our current trajectory. The 21 million cap undermines security; it's self-destructive. It should now be clear that Satoshi made a mistake."

Additionally, he denied that the surge in Bitcoin prices could solve this problem and envisioned a scenario: if the price of Bitcoin reached 1 million dollars per coin, but if the fee levels remained unchanged, its security costs would still only cover the current level of 10%.

Source: CryptoSlate