The Fee Estimation Obstacles That Shape Up During a Bitcoin Transaction

March 23, 2019 Quick read

An online Bitcoin Exchange has successfully become the most opted-for every crypto trading asset for everyone associated with the crypto market. However, while dealing in a Bitcoin transaction, various fee estimation challenges may pop up.

Let's understand what they are and how we can tackle them effectively.

A Brief into the Background of Bitcoin's Transactional Fees

Once cryptocurrencies came into the picture and Bitcoin was invented, the transactional fees that were topped on the process were voluntary - The fee rate was unforced and elective unless it was absolutely necessary. The very same transaction fees were taken into account for miners deemed as a grant for all the mining work undertaken by them.

Bitcoin wallets asked for the same price or fee for every transaction sanctioned on the network based on the value set by the wallet developer at the time of creating the wallet.

A lot of years have passed since the inception of Bitcoin and if we talk about Bitcoin Core then its default fee has been altered quite a few times so much so that the Bitcoin exchange rate has shot up from 0.01 BTC to 0.0005 BTC only to decrease to 0.0001 BTC over the period of the past few years. Priority transactions have mobilized users to deal in Bitcoin transactions with no extra charges although this was stopped by the end of 2015.

Figuring Out the Fee Estimations of Bitcoin Core

Bitcoin Core uses certain algorithms to draw out data. With progression, the algorithms transforming the data by merging transactions as fee rate buckets and then putting the tracking plan into action. This determines the various buckets to be mined. The algorithm is designed in such a way that it results in the higher priced transactions to be added into the blocks first and after them the lower priced transactions will follow.

Several obstacles that take place due to fee estimates are thwarted because of this very reason.

·       Excessive fee payers are awarded a grant of liability.

·       Similarly, lower fee payers may also be ignored if the miner declares them to be liable.

Ameliorating Fee Estimates of Bitcoin Core

In case a transaction ever gets stuck, it mainly happens because the higher priced transactions were mined and your transaction gets shoved to the end of the priority queue. The lower fee transaction obstacle can possibly be averted by the Replace by Fee process, increasing the bid with time however it is not as easy as it sounds.

Another possible method is the Child Pays for Parent system in which the user adds extra fees to the newer transactions to be sanctioned along with sending the data of the previously stuck lower priced transactions. By this, the miners are informed to change the priority scale of the complete transaction set.

Any service that plans on forming their Bitcoin transaction should dynamically crosscheck the minimal and maximum fee limit. Statically set fees may end up becoming outdated and in urgency will call for unnecessary software upgrade so it's better to opt for the dynamic system.

The Bitcoin Internetwork of Fee Estimates

Currently, a lot of owners who provide the Bitcoin transaction's software where it is created are at heads with each other to create their own fee estimate algorithms. The market has become highly competitive and this is based on the fee estimate stats being released time and time again.

And we hope this Bitcoin internetwork comes out with more robust tools to garner a more in view understanding of the various fee estimate algorithms.

Online Cryptocurrency Exchanges are changing the way crypto works and with so much demand for scoring a seat on the Bitcoin blockchain that has become a rare amenity, the race of fee estimate algorithms will continue. In the end, it is all about priority and how you manage what you get.