The proposal to change the smallest Bitcoin unit from “Satoshi” to “Bit” has attracted new interest as developers, founders and ideological leaders gained weight.
The proposal was introduced last month by synonym CEO John Carvalho and is known as BIP 177.
By current standards, 1 BTC is equivalent to 100 million Satts. However, Carvalho’s plan reverses that perspective by redefine the smallest unit, 1 atoshi, as “one bitcoin”, making what is now known as 1 btc equal to 1 million bitcoins (or bits).
In this model, transactions of 0.0001 BTC are represented as 10,000 Bitcoins. Similarly, if you own 10.23486 BTC, you will be converted to 1,023,486,000 bitcoins.
Carvalho argues that this shift will simplify how users understand top-level cryptography, reduce cognitive friction, and align the user interface with BTC’s transactional structure. He pointed out:
“The Bitcoin ledger represents values as integral-based units. Decimal points are merely human-imposed abstractions.”
Mixed Reaction Tracks Bitcoin BIP 177
The proposal sparked enthusiasm and concern within the crypto community.
Twitter founder and supporter of Bitcoin Jack Dorsey supported the change, saying the term “SATS” creates psychological barriers for new users.
According to him:
“‘sats’ is definitely the wrong term, stopping everyday people from earning and spending Bitcoin.”
Jan3 CEO Samson Mow also supports rebase to bits, but I recommend waiting until Bitcoin hits dollar Satoshiparity. At that point, he proposes adding two additional decimal points, called “satcents” to enhance the granularity.
He said:
“Bitcoin is synonymous with money, so there’s no need for SATS.”
However, not everyone agrees with the move, as it cites concerns about broader security and understanding within the broader community of BTC.
Yu Xian, founder of blockchain security company Slowmist, warned that the change could lead to misunderstanding and technical disruption for industry Noobs.
Xian promoted:
“if this BIP177 path, Some Poor Platform Maybe confusion above and Stupidly record 1 Bitcoin As 1 BTC. you I got it In believe, more Basics safety problem, more probably that teeth In happen… of course, Related scam Maybe pop above Too much. “
Despite concerns, Carvalho claims that critics are not really involved in the content of BIP 177.
He said:
“Most of those who are scared of BIP 177 don’t actually read it and don’t even try to refute the actual motives within it.”