A long-time developer wants to split Bitcoin blockchain and reassign Satoshi coins. The community is calling it a theft

Long-time Bitcoin developer Paul Sztorc has proposed a contentious 2026 hard fork called “eCash” that would copy Bitcoin’s history and issue equivalent eCash tokens to BTC holders (example: hold 4.19 BTC at fork, receive 4.19 eCash). The fork, slated for Bitcoin block height 964,000 in August 2026, would add Drivechains (BIP300/BIP301) to enable sidechains. The proposal’s most controversial element is a pre-fork reassignment of coins tied to Satoshi Nakamoto (≈1.1M BTC), with fewer than half of those Satoshi-equivalent eCash coins reportedly allocated to investors to bootstrap development. The plan has drawn sharp community backlash—critics call the reassignment theft and warn it could set a dangerous precedent, risk replay/centralization issues and undermine confidence in BTC holdings. Market impact is primarily reputational and technical: heightened uncertainty and negative sentiment around Bitcoin governance could pressure BTC risk premia and exchange flows if the proposal gains traction, but actual price effects depend on adoption and technical safeguards if the fork proceeds.