Adam Back Opposes BIP-110, Warns Proposed Ordinals Fix Could Undermine Bitcoin

Adam Back, CEO of Blockstream, has pushed back against Bitcoin Improvement Proposal 110 (BIP-110), arguing that the suggested fix for Ordinals-related congestion may pose greater risks than the issue it aims to solve.

BIP-110, introduced by pseudonymous developer Dathon Ohm, proposes temporarily reducing the amount of arbitrary data allowed in Bitcoin transactions. The goal is to curb images, videos and other non-financial data stored onchain through mechanisms such as Ordinals inscriptions. Around 7.5% of Bitcoin nodes — primarily running Bitcoin Knots — have reportedly signaled readiness for the change.

Concerns Over Consensus and Fund Freezing Risks

Back contends that implementing a consensus-level modification without broad agreement could damage Bitcoin’s credibility as a secure monetary system. He described spam as an annoyance rather than a systemic threat and warned that BIP-110 could unintentionally render certain unspent transaction outputs unspendable, effectively freezing funds.

Ohm has acknowledged the theoretical risk but maintains that safeguards are built into the proposal to avoid impacting legitimate use cases. The measure is designed as a 12-month temporary restriction while longer-term solutions are evaluated.

Declining Ordinals Fees and Node Market Share Shift

The debate intensified after developers removed the 80-byte OP_RETURN limit in late 2025, increasing capacity for non-financial transactions. Since then, Bitcoin Core’s node dominance has declined, while Bitcoin Knots has gained share.

Meanwhile, onchain data shows Ordinals inscription fees have fallen sharply from their 2023 peak, raising questions about their long-term contribution to miner revenue as block subsidies continue to halve.

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