Tokyo — Bitcoin has reversed steep losses as miners begin using new software that aims to bridge an ideological gap which has threatened to divide the crypto-currency. The price of bitcoin rose as high as $2,248 before trading at $2,232 as of 3.55pm in Tokyo. The digital currency slumped to as low as $1,758 at the weekend on the Coinbase exchange. Bitcoin’s community has been at bitter odds for more than two years about how to solve its scaling problem, which has hampered the crypto-currency’s growth and allowed rivals, such as the Ethereum platform, to steal some of the spotlight. The new software, SegWit2x, is seen as a compromise for the two sides of the debate: miners who act as the backbone of the blockchain, and developers, known as Core, who uphold bitcoin’s bug-free software. While both sides have incentives to reach a consensus, bitcoin’s lack of central authority has made reaching agreement difficult. SegWit2x was formally released over the weekend July 15-16 and has alrea...
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