As of block 491,407 on the bitcoin blockchain, another alternative version of the protocol of the cryptocurrency has been formed after some developers split the blockchain. And in just one month, yet another fork is imminent.

After the split, bitcoin owners stand to receive one bitcoin gold for each bitcoin, assuming their wallets or exchanges support the new creation, although some such as the most popular US-based exchange CoinBase have refused to support the fork for the time being as there are "concerns about its security and stability." The project, which seeks to improve bitcoin's technology by changing how its competition for rewards is conducted, is the second to launch since August via an increasingly common process called a "hard fork." Readers may recall the term from the launch of bitcoin cash, the alternative version of the bitcoin protocol that spurred global headlines for unexpectedly creating billions of dollars in value, seemingly out of thin air.