What is Paul Sztorc's Bitcoin hard fork 'eCash' and how it affects BTC?

Long-time Bitcoin developer Paul Sztorc has proposed a dramatic hard fork of the Bitcoin blockchain, dubbed 'eCash,' scheduled for August 2026. This fork aims to create a new, separate chain by copying Bitcoin's code, offering existing Bitcoin holders an equivalent amount of the new eCash tokens for free. A key feature of eCash will be the integration of Drivechains, a scaling architecture Sztorc has championed since 2015, which allows for sidechains to operate with different rules without altering Bitcoin's base layer.

The most controversial aspect of Sztorc's proposal involves reassigning coins that would have gone to Satoshi Nakamoto's equivalent addresses on the new eCash chain to early investors. Sztorc argues this is necessary to incentivize collaboration and build momentum for the project, preventing it from becoming a "zombie project" or overly centralized. However, this move has drawn significant criticism from the crypto community, with some labeling it as "theft" and disrespectful. Critics like Peter McCormack and Josh Ellithorpe have voiced concerns about the precedent it sets, the potential for future coin appropriation, and the misrepresentation of existing projects by using the name "eCash."

(Source：CoinDesk)