Bitcoin Core's Transaction Relay Policy Sparks Community Debate

On June 10, OKX announced that it will delist the perpetual swaps for X, BSV, GUN, BR, and SWELL with U settlement on June 12, 2025, at 4:00 p.m. (UTC+8). This decision comes amidst ongoing debates within the Bitcoin Core development community regarding transaction relay policies and data embedding practices.

The Bitcoin Core development community has been engaged in a significant debate following the release of a statement titled "Bitcoin Core Development and Transaction Relay Policy." This announcement has been compared to the controversial "New York Agreement" and has sparked discussions about the future of the Bitcoin network. The statement proposes implementing a built-in transaction relay within the Bitcoin Core software, which has raised concerns and divided the community.

The core of the controversy revolves around the use of the Bitcoin blockchain's OP-Return area for data embedding, a practice that some argue bypasses the block size limit. This has led to a split within the community, with the mainstream right, represented by the Bitcoin Core team, and the far right, which includes figures like Luke, holding opposing views. The far right faction has introduced a garbage filter to treat data-embedding transactions as junk, leading to an Ordi crash and highlighting the tensions within the community.

The Core team's proposal aims to lift the OP-Return size restriction from 80KB to unlimited, allowing for more transactions to be processed and potentially enhancing network security. The transaction relay policy is designed to prevent DoS attacks by filtering out spam 0-fee transactions and speeding up transaction block propagation. This move is seen by some as an additional subsidy to miners, as it allows for more transactions to be processed, potentially enhancing the security of the Bitcoin network.

The debate centers around the definition of spam transactions. The far right believes that data embedding is a form of spam and should be eliminated, arguing that Bitcoin should not become a settlement chain. In contrast, the mainstream right advocates for a more lenient approach, suggesting that filters should only target purely malicious DoS attacks. This difference in opinion has led to a market share decline for transaction relays with radical spam filtering rules, as the Core team's mild spam filtering rules gain traction.

The implementation of the transaction relay policy by the Core team is seen as a step towards legitimizing data embedding transactions, which pay fees based on their size and provide additional revenue to miners. This, in turn, helps maintain the security of the Bitcoin network, even after multiple halving events. The Core team's approach is supported by those who believe in the principle of transaction freedom and the security of the Bitcoin network. However, opponents argue that this move is a compromise to miners at the expense of users, a viewpoint that the Core team disputes, stating that Op_Return users are also Bitcoin users.

In conclusion, the Bitcoin Core team's proposal to implement a built-in transaction relay policy has sparked a heated debate within the community. While some see it as a necessary step to enhance network security and prevent DoS attacks, others view it as a compromise that favors miners over users. The underlying issue of data embedding and the definition of spam transactions continues to divide the community, with the Core team advocating for a more lenient approach to transaction filtering. The delisting of certain perpetual swaps by OKX adds another layer of complexity to the ongoing discussions within the cryptocurrency ecosystem.