We wanted to give customers another update on two upcoming Bitcoin forks — Bitcoin Segwit2x and Bitcoin Gold. You can read more about what a digital currency fork is here.
We operate by the principle that our customers should benefit to the greatest extent possible from hard forks or other unexpected events. This is essential in our mission to make GDAX the most trusted and liquid digital asset exchange.
Bitcoin Segwit2x
The Bitcoin Segwit2x fork is projected to take place on November 16th and will temporarily result in two bitcoin blockchains. Following the fork, the current bitcoin blockchain will continue trading as Bitcoin (BTC) and the forked blockchain will trade as Bitcoin2x (B2X).
All GDAX customers will be able to trade both Bitcoin (BTC) and Bitcoin2x (B2X) within 4 hours after the fork.
Any customer with a Bitcoin (BTC) balance on GDAX at the time of the fork will be credited with an equal amount of the Bitcoin2x (B2X). No action is required — we will automatically credit your account.
For more information about Bitcoin2x please see our FAQ page.
Bitcoin2x Timeline
- Approximately 24 hours pre-fork: GDAX will pause all BTC deposits and withdrawals. ETH and LTC deposits and withdrawals will not be impacted
- Approximately 4 hours pre-fork: GDAX will pause trading on all BTC order books. ETH and LTC trading will not be impacted
- Fork (block 494,784): A snapshot of all BTC balances will be taken at Block 494,784. All GDAX customers with a BTC balance at the time of the snapshot will be credited an equal amount of B2X.
- Within 4 hours post fork: GDAX will re-enable trading on all BTC order books as well as trading on 3 new order books: B2X-BTC, B2X-USD, and B2X-EUR.
- Approximately 24–48 hours post fork: Once we have ensured that the blockchains are stable, GDAX will re-enable deposits and withdrawals on both the BTC and B2X blockchains. Please be careful when depositing or withdrawing funds as some wallets and bitcoin services may refer to the two blockchains differently.
We will update customers closer to the date of the fork with more exact timing.
Bitcoin Gold
The Bitcoin Gold fork is projected to take place on October 23. Information about this fork has been limited and there are concerns about its security and stability. As a result, we do not believe it is safe to allow support for Bitcoin Gold at this time. If the blockchain proves to be secure and valuable, GDAX may choose to support it and at that point credit your account with an amount of Bitcoin Gold equal to your Bitcoin (BTC) balance at the time of the fork.
You can read more about Bitcoin Gold at our FAQ page.
Over the coming weeks, we will keep you updated on this event through our blog, status page, and twitter.
