Status: Draft
Type: Standards Track
Created: December 27, 2024
Abstract

This proposal mandates miners to include at least 0.1% of transactions in their blocks from the oldest transactions by date, even if they have low fees. This mechanism helps prevent mining centralization and censorship, encouraging miners not to exclude certain transactions.
Motivation

The increasing centralization of Bitcoin mining and potential regulations that may require miners to censor or exclude certain transactions pose a threat to the Bitcoin network. Mandating the inclusion of a small percentage of old transactions, even with low fees, ensures that no single miner can censor block contents without sacrificing their own rewards.
Specification

    Mandatory Inclusion of Old even if with Low-Fee Transactions
        Each miner is required to include at least 0.1% of the total transactions in a block from the oldest transactions in the mempool, even if their fees are below the current market average.
        These transactions must be added to blocks regardless of their fees, prioritizing their age.

    Block Validation
        Bitcoin network nodes will validate blocks only if they contain the required percentage of old transactions.
        If a block fails to meet this criterion, it will be deemed invalid and rejected by the network.

    Incentives
        Miners are incentivized to include these transactions to ensure their blocks are valid and to avoid losing block rewards.

Advantages

    Censorship Resistance: Miners cannot censor transactions without forfeiting their rewards.
    Greater Inclusivity: Old and low-fee transactions are assured of being confirmed.
    Decentralization Prevention: Reducing the potential for centralized censorship keeps the Bitcoin network decentralized.

Considerations

    Impact on the Mempool: The mempool may become more dynamic and up-to-date with fewer old, stagnant transactions.
    Resource Management: Miners will need to adjust their systems to automatically identify and include relevant transactions.

Conclusion

Implementing this BIP will help maintain the integrity and decentralization of the Bitcoin network, preventing censorship and ensuring all transactions have a fair chance of confirmation.