<p>This rule is to prevent people from unintentionally spending Bitcoins that they wind up not owning.</p>

<p>For any Bitcoins other than the block reward, unless you intentionally double spend, a reorganization leaves your transactions valid. So they can just be included in the new blocks. (Assuming they don't spend the proceeds of a double spend.)</p>

<p>However, if there's a chain reorganization, there's no way to recover block rewards. Whoever mined the blocks in the other chain gets that reward. That would make your transaction invalid since it would spend funds you don't actually have.</p>

CC BY-SA 3.0
2013-11-15T23:12:05.227Z
Not just your own, but every transaction directly on indirectly depending on it.
Pieter Wuille
CC BY-SA 3.0
2013-05-12T16:41:58.700Z
2013-05-12T16:41:58.700Z
David Schwartz
<p>I mine bitcoin testnet blocks and I find some blocks with difficulty 1.</p>

<p>Some examples: I mined these blocks:</p>

<ul>
<li><a href="https://blockexplorer.com/testnet/block/000000009c3b3329bcc2a6887b4030849994e2cfb7f09c37f37a3b7e0ac27c83" rel="nofollow">Block 1</a></li>
<li><a href="https://blockexplorer.com/testnet/block/00000000cafdd9a4519f95a9b15a3977d4e98b20365fcc8d0babc50e40cbd278" rel="nofollow">Block 2</a></li>
</ul>

<p>Why must generated coins mature 120 blocks before they can be spent?</p>

CC BY-SA 3.0
2013-05-12T14:40:41.007Z
"Can everybody explain this sentence", where did you quote it from? Context is useful if not required to explain most sentences.
Steven Roose
<difficulty><testnet><mining-reward><immature-coins>
Why must generated coins mature 120 blocks before they can be spent?
Kiet Ho
# Why must generated coins mature 120 blocks before they can be spent?

(Asked by: username_0 on 2013-05-12)

I mine bitcoin testnet blocks and I find some blocks with difficulty 1.

Some examples: I mined these blocks:

* [Block 1](https://blockexplorer.com/testnet/block/000000009c3b3329bcc2a6887b4030849994e2cfb7f09c37f37a3b7e0ac27c83)
* [Block 2](https://blockexplorer.com/testnet/block/00000000cafdd9a4519f95a9b15a3977d4e98b20365fcc8d0babc50e40cbd278)

Why must generated coins mature 120 blocks before they can be spent?

**Tags:** difficulty, testnet, mining-reward, immature-coins

> **Comments:**
> **username_1**: "Can everybody explain this sentence", where did you quote it from? Context is useful if not required to explain most sentences.  

---

## 1 answers

### Answer by username_2 on 2013-05-12. Score: 6 | Accepted answer

This rule is to prevent people from unintentionally spending Bitcoins that they wind up not owning.

For any Bitcoins other than the block reward, unless you intentionally double spend, a reorganization leaves your transactions valid. So they can just be included in the new blocks. (Assuming they don't spend the proceeds of a double spend.)

However, if there's a chain reorganization, there's no way to recover block rewards. Whoever mined the blocks in the other chain gets that reward. That would make your transaction invalid since it would spend funds you don't actually have.

> **Comments:**
> **username_3**: Not just your own, but every transaction directly on indirectly depending on it.  

---

