Bitcoin Cash proposes to remedy the situation by increasing the size of blocks to between 8 MB and 32 MB, thereby enabling processing of more transactions per block.
The average number of transactions per block on Bitcoin is between 1,000 and 1,500. The number of transactions on Bitcoin Cash’s blockchain during a stress test in Sep 2018 surged to 25,000 per block. In 2010, the average size of a block on Bitcoin's blockchain was less than 100 KB and the average fee for a transaction amounted to a couple of cents.
This made its blockchain vulnerable to attacks, consisting entirely of cheap transactions, that could potentially cripple its system. To prevent such a situation, the size of a block on bitcoin’s blockchain was limited to 1 MB. Each block was generated every 10 minutes, allowing for space and time between successive transactions.
The limitation on size and time required to generate a block added another layer of security on bitcoin’s blockchain. But those safeguards proved to be a hindrance when bitcoin gained mainstream traction on the back of greater awareness of its potential and enhancements to its platform.
The average size of a block had increased to 600K by Jan 2015. The number of transactions using Bitcoin surged, causing a buildup of unconfirmed transactions. The average time to confirm a transaction also moved upwards.
Correspondingly, the fee for transaction confirmation also increased, weakening the argument for bitcoin as a competitor to expensive credit card processing systems. (Fees for transactions on bitcoin’s blockchain are specified by users.
Miners typically push transactions with higher fees to the front of the queue in order to maximize profits
