Bitcoin Diamond (BCD) is a cryptocurrency, a fork of bitcoin with slightly modernized technology. Instead of the SHA-256 mining algorithm, another algorithm (X13) is used here, which is ASIC resistant. The purpose of the fork is to fix some of the shortcomings of Bitcoin, such as lack of privacy protection, high entry threshold, and slow transactions.
Like the original Bitcoin, Bitcoin Diamond was created by anonymous developers. The team listed on the site uses pseudonyms, although now it already discloses personal data in confidential communication with partners. It is assumed that the headquarters of the project is located in Singapore.
The fork took place on November 24, 2017, at block 495,866. However, at that time, the founders of BCD had not yet provided users with anything — neither open source code (there was not even a GitHub account), nor a roadmap or other technical document. Therefore, many considered the coin a fraudulent project. Shortly after the launch, the source code was finally released, and social media communities also appeared. This significantly increased the credibility of the new cryptocurrency.
The developers stated as the goal of creating BCD the correct the following shortcomings of BTC:
- Weak protection of transaction and user privacy.
- Slow and expensive transactions.
- High requirements for new members.
- Bitcoin Diamond was supposed to be cheaper, more reliable, faster, and more private. At the time of the launch of the network, 170,000,000 BCDs were issued, and the remaining 40,000,000 BCDs had to be mined.