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The Runes Protocol Effect, Will Bitcoin’s New Token Standard Drive Network Fees and Miner Revenue to All-Time Highs?

The Runes Protocol Effect, Will Bitcoin’s New Token Standard Drive Network Fees and Miner Revenue to All-Time Highs?

DailyCoinDailyCoin2025/12/05 16:08
By:DailyCoin

The network just witnessed an unprecedented increase in fees, leaving an essential question on everyone’s mind: Can new token standards affect mining rewards and the security structure of Bitcoin?

The fourth Bitcoin halving cut block rewards in half, reducing miner income at the exact moment the Runes protocol launched. This overlap created a sharp shift in how the market viewed incentives, the  bitcoin price today  and the future funding of network security.

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Instead of relying solely on diminishing subsidies, the ecosystem was suddenly confronted with a large-scale experiment in fee-driven sustainability.

The Runes Protocol Effect, Will Bitcoin’s New Token Standard Drive Network Fees and Miner Revenue to All-Time Highs? image 0 The Runes Protocol Effect, Will Bitcoin’s New Token Standard Drive Network Fees and Miner Revenue to All-Time Highs? image 1

A threat to network security

Additionally, the system encourages a reduction in the supply of Bitcoin every four years. Following the recent halving event, the rewards per block have been reduced from 6.25 BTC to 3.125 BTC.

This implies that the fees form an even more critical part of the miners’ remuneration. What makes the issue even more complicated is that the costs may not increase.

This pressure became more pronounced with the scheduled release of the Runes. This made the block space instantaneously congested due to the sudden demand. This highlights the rapid pace at which new technology can impact the earnings of the mining community.

This event really demonstrated how demand-driven activity can directly contribute to the reinforcement of the Bitcoin economy when demand is high.

A temporary solution?

The roll-out of the Runes platform led to an instant struggle over blockspace as users sought to create early-stage versions of their ‘etchings’ and reserve notable names for their tokens. This led to a sudden spike in demand and users paid increased fees so that their transactions could be processed at an accelerated pace.

The resulting fee surge set historical records. On April 20, 2024, the same day as the Bitcoin halving, average fees climbed into the US$90 to $120 range, while priority transactions briefly exceeded US$200 during peak congestion.

This intense fee pressure pushed miner revenue to roughly US$100 million for the day, really placing it among the most profitable 24-hour periods in Bitcoin’s history.

The halving block itself demonstrated just how dramatic the effect was. The winning mining pool earned more than 40 BTC in combined block rewards and fees from a single block, with fees alone contributing over twelve times the newly issued bitcoin.

This extraordinary event highlighted the revenue-generating potential of new token meta-protocols and showed that non-financial activities can drive significant on-chain demand when enthusiasm peaks.

The Runes Contribution to the Fee Market

The launch of the Runes protocol demonstrated the strong market demand for token standards that create new ways to use Bitcoin’s block space.

While earlier systems, such as Ordinals and BRC-20 , also caused significant fee spikes, Runes introduced a more efficient model that attracted new participants and generated substantial fee pressure during its early adoption phase.

A considerable proportion of the mining fees incurred during the early months after its release in April 2024 came directly from transactions on the platform called Runes. Although the precise contribution of the transactions on the platform cannot remain at a fixed point, but at an uncertain average of possibly 45%, the platform’s transactions have become one of the significant mining fees incurred.

The significance of the trend above highlights the point that the diminishing block reward after every halving makes the fees earned per block even more crucial. This is because the block rewards are diminishing after every halving.

The post-hype reality for profitability

While the initial fee spike was historic, the euphoria did not last. Market activity cooled rapidly following the launch frenzy and the intense competition for block space quickly vanished. By the day after the halving, average fees had dropped sharply, proving the volatility of demand.

Long-term statistics reveal a complex reality for many miners. Block subsidy currently remains the most significant component of their income.

When interest in trends like Ordinals and Runes inevitably dips, fee income shrinks drastically. The reduced block reward, combined with dwindling fee income, creates a severe “double squeeze” on miner profitability.

This places significant pressure on every single mining operation, as it necessitates an increased focus on the sustainability of token-driven price spikes. Security on the network requires a solid floor on fees that remain consistently priced at higher levels.

Scaling and consistency

However, the meta-protocols represented by the likes of Runes serve as an indication of the potential that may emerge through the development of the base layer on Bitcoin. The fact of the matter remains that the future of this form of currency will likely shift toward relying solely on the fees that transactions incur after block rewards diminish, approaching the year 2140.

According to OKX price data as of November 2025, Bitcoin trades at approximately $91,283.60, with a circulating supply of around 19.95 million BTC and a market capitalization of roughly $1.82 trillion. These figures highlight how fixed supply and growing utility shape the bitcoin price today and support the economic mechanics behind mining.

Periods of peak base-layer demand also spur the movement toward layer-2 networks. Although users may transition to Lightning due to its efficiency and lower fees, the activity on the blockchain still flows back to the base layer. This keeps the miners integrated with the overall economic system.

However, these changes, such as the runewallet, ultimately result in a collaborative approach, as the new technology opens up different functions of Bitcoin while still supporting the fees that will one day secure the system.

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Disclaimer: The content of this article solely reflects the author's opinion and does not represent the platform in any capacity. This article is not intended to serve as a reference for making investment decisions.

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