Miners Face Toughest Conditions Yet

The
difficulty
in
mining
Bitcoin
has
surged
to
a
new
record
level,
hence
squeezing
profit
margins.
Reaching
92.67
trillion,
the
difficulty
index
exceeded
the
previous
record
peak
of
90.67
trillion
set
in
July
this
year.

This
3.6%
rise
represents
the
increased
competitiveness
resulting
from
record-breaking
hashrate
values.
It
emphasizes
how
resilient
and
secure
the
network
is
becoming
since
mining
Bitcoin
calls
for
more
computational
capability.

Source: CoinWarz

Miners
Liquidating
Their
Bitcoin
Holdings

Interestingly,
since
September
8,
miners
have
sold
almost
30,000
Bitcoin,
worth
around
$1.71
billion.
This
significant
sell-off
points
to
possible
problems
with
liquidity
or
worries
about
future
price
movements
among
miners.

The
added
difficulty
comes
at
a
trying
time
for
miners,
still
adapting
to
the
repercussions
of
April’s
“halving,”
a
programmed
decrease
in
mining
rewards
that
has
already
halved
possible
profits
since
then,
helping
to
explain
a
rough
10%
decline
in
the
price
of
Bitcoin.

Source: CoinWarz

Miner
Secures
Block
Reward
Alone

Despite
the
difficulties,
a
single
miner
obtained
a
block
reward
of
around
$180,000.
This
uncommon
success
underlines
how
much
individual
miners
may
still
produce
in
spite
of
growing
challenges.

NEWS:
Solo

#Bitcoin
miner
wins
a
$180K
(3.169

$BTC)
reward
after
successfully
mining
block
860749.

pic.twitter.com/KrBDOw99ue

—
CoinGecko
(@coingecko)

September
11,
2024

The
growing
difficulty
hasn’t
discouraged
miners
from
improving
their
operations,
either.
September
saw
an
all-time
high
in
Bitcoin’s
hashrate,
which
gauges
the
overall
computing
capacity
sustaining
the
network.
This
implies
that
in
the
near
future
miners
will
be
betting
on
a
big
price
rise.

Effect
On
Miners
Listed
Publicly

The
rise
in
mining
complexity
has
heightened
competitiveness
and
strained
profit
margins
for
publicly
traded
bitcoin
miners.
These
difficulties
have
led
major
mining
corporations
to
disclose
notable
declines
in
their
stock
prices
and
production
rates.

This
year,
shares
of
Marathon
Digital
Inc.
are
off
31%,
while
Riot
Platform’s
fell
54%.
The
stock
performances
of
a
number
of
widely
traded
mining
companies
reflect
the
overall
difficulties
of
the
crypto
mining
industry.

The
effects
on
Bitcoin’s
price
are
yet
unknown,
with
possible
consequences
for
long-term
network
security
as
well
as
transient
price
swings.
While
some
worry
that
the
significant
volume
of
BTC
being
sold
by
miners
could
set
off
selling
pressure
and
a
possible
decline
in
Bitcoin’s
price,
others
consider
the
rise
in
mining
difficulty
as
a
good
indication
for
the
security
of
the
network
and
investor
trust.

Therefore,
every
investor
should
track
these
developments
to
assist
one
in
making
a
wise
choice
about
financial
strategy.
Reflecting
the
uncertainties
about
the
present
market
conditions,
the
optimistic
attitudes
of
the
Bitcoin
community
have
also
plummeted
to
21%
out
of
51,341
respondents
surveyed.

Featured
image
from
Bankless,
chart
from
TradingView