Block reward

In plain words

Every block pays the miner who found it — payment for work, not a gift. It comes in two parts. New bitcoin: 3.125 coins per block today, the only way coins are ever made. And the fees from every payment inside. The new-coin half shrinks every four years toward zero; fees are meant to carry the load after. Value for value.

Why it matters

• The prize is the security budget: it is why miners burn energy honestly.
• Every bitcoin in existence began as a block reward.
• The handoff from new coins to fees is Bitcoin's biggest long-term question.

Go deeper

• Coinbase transaction
• The halving
• Fees