Blockstream CEO Adam Back dismissed BIP-110 on June 8, calling it technically flawed. He warned that forcing its activation could split Bitcoin into a minority fork.
Back’s remarks came as BIP-110 momentum reached a flashpoint in early June. The proposal would restrict non-monetary data in Bitcoin transactions through a user-activated soft fork (UASF), bypassing miner consensus.
Back Rejects BIP-110’s Technical Basis
Back argued that the proposal fails on both technical and ecosystem grounds. He contrasted BIP-110 sharply with SegWit, which secured broad developer and ecosystem support. A late-stage disruption affected SegWit’s activation, but consensus had already formed, he said.
the reason it doesn't have consensus is it's stupid idea, doesn't work, and completely fails at technical consensus. polar opposite to segwit which did have technical AND ecosystem consensus (modulo a later stage attempt to abuse the activation process to veto what was agreed)
SegWit was activated in 2017 after years of coordination among miners, developers, and node operators. BIP-110 supporters have drawn parallels to that process, but Back rejected the comparison.
Back also dismissed the spam-reduction argument central to BIP-110’s case. Proponents claim the proposal would clean up the Bitcoin (BTC) network, but Back said it simply would not work.
Back left little ambiguity about the outcome he expects. He said forcing a user-activated soft fork through without genuine ecosystem backing produces a minority chain, not a real upgrade. Critics have also accused BIP-110’s lead proponent of misrepresenting past events.
“the bip is stupid, it doesn’t work, and it doesn’t have technical nor ecosystem consensus. forcing it anyway is how you end up on a minority contentious fork. but people done last year explaining things. fork off and find out”
Back posted a cat sitting in a blue-tape square. The label read “DEFAULT OP_RETURN LIMIT.” He captioned it “the 110 contentious fork in a nutshell.”
The image captured his view that BIP-110 enforces a boundary that Bitcoin’s consensus process does not recognize. He has laid out his broader thesis in his Bitcoin treasury arbitrage piece, linking sound money principles to long-term asset value.
Bitcoin’s Future Stays Bullish for Back
Despite the protocol dispute, Back retained his bullish stance on Bitcoin. On June 9, he identified “the bitcoin permabulls” as those still fully committed to BTC when asked about market sentiment.
His bitcoin investment strategy centers on long-term sound money fundamentals, a position the BIP-110 debate highlights rather than undermines.
BIP-110’s activation window narrows over the coming months. Node support sits at low single-digit levels. Whether those shifts will determine if Back’s minority fork scenario becomes real.
