Forking is a way to defend Bitcoin from capture
The Bitcoin system can be harmed in case some of its users who wield certain powers start misbehaving.
That includes
- developers
- miners
- holders of large currency stakes (who generally might influence or even partly own the above)
Bitcoin having been created and maintained as a protocol built on open source, is capable of slipping attempts to grasp control of it through the forkability of its components.
There can be competing "Bitcoins" - protocols deriving from the common ancestor.
They may be known under distinct names and tickers, such as 'Bitcoin Cash' (BCH) in order to provide the market with more information about themselves.
To provide continued resilience against capture, they continue being open source protocols, free to anyone to use and modify.
Soundness of the original money (Bitcoin) is not harmed in general by currency splits which preserve holder equity.
A good book to read:
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