eCash Bitcoin Fork Distributes ECX Tokens to Eligible Holders

eCash Bitcoin fork — Bitcoin holders who self-custodied their coins at block 973,728 have received an equivalent balance of ECX, the native token of the new eCash network that forked from Bitcoin on October 29.

The fork, spearheaded by Drivechain advocate Paul Sztorc, aims to create a network where developers can build independent sidechains for payments, privacy, and other applications. Five sidechains launched with the mainnet, with two more planned. Sztorc has positioned eCash as a response to what he views as Bitcoin’s conservative development culture stifling innovation.

Accessing the new tokens requires using a wallet that supports eCash, with a specific process to separate ECX from BTC holdings to avoid replay attacks. The project warns holders to move their ECX first before spending any Bitcoin to prevent accidental loss.

While the tokens are not yet listed on major centralized exchanges, platforms like NeoxEX have opened trading for ECX. Holders with BTC on exchanges must rely on those platforms to decide if and how they will distribute the forked assets.