What the Bitcoin halving actually does
About every four years, the reward for adding new blocks falls by half. It changes the rate of new supply, and its effect on price is debated.
How a bitcoin transaction gets confirmed
Your payment waits in a queue, a miner includes it in a block, and each later block makes reversing it harder.
From send to block
When you send bitcoin, your wallet broadcasts a signed transaction to the network. It then waits, usually with others, until a miner includes it in a new block. Blocks arrive about every 10 minutes on average, but the timing varies.
What a confirmation means
One confirmation means your transaction is in a block. Each new block added afterward is another confirmation, making it harder to rewrite that history. Many services wait for several confirmations on larger payments.
Why it can take longer
Block space is limited. When demand is high, transactions paying lower fees can wait longer. Some wallets let you raise the fee on a pending payment.
Sources
[The Editor links primary sources here before publication.]
Disclosures
[AI use, holdings and commercial relationships are shown here.]