In July, the Bitcoin hashrate suffered its biggest percentile decrease in the network’s history after China (which once accounted for 75% of Bitcoin’s hashrate) told banks to stop facilitating cryptocurrency transactions and issued bans on mining.
China’s crackdown on crypto mining sparked The Great Mining Migration, which saw mining firms move their operations to more favorable regions. Since the ban, Bitcoin has hit multiple all-time highs, seen more adoption from institutional investors, and even gained legal tender status.
Bitcoin Mining Hits New All-Time High At the peak of its crypto adoption, many referred to China as a nation that dictated the pace and direction of the world’s largest cryptocurrency. However, the nation’s crackdown on mining led many mining firms to leave the country, and the global mining power of Bitcoin fell under 70 EH/s (exahash per second).
Despite the crackdown, the hashrate (mining power) has been steadily rising. The bloodbath over the weekend could not halt the climb, as the hashrate tapped 190 EH/s on Friday, December 3.
The Bitcoin mining hashrate continued to climb, and on Monday, December 6, peaked above 215.4 EH/s – a new record for the Bitcoin network.
The one-month Bitcoin Network Hashrate chart.
On The Flipside
- At the time of this writing, the Bitcoin mining hashrate has dropped under 200 EH/s. The hashrate of Bitcoin is currently 169.8189 EH/s.
Reason for the Rise in Bitcoin Mining Hashrate
The hashrate has been rising as the mining difficulty dropped by 1.49% during the last difficulty change on November 28. This is the first mining difficulty decrease since July 17.
The current Bitcoin mining difficulty is 22.34 trillion. With the current rate of processing power, the next difficulty change has been predicted to increase by 1.17% to a possible 22.6 trillion.
In addition to a reduction in difficulties, mining firms have sought out locations with friendlier laws, and cheaper and cleaner sources of energy for the power-hungry Bitcoin mining machines.
For example, mining giants Hello Pal and AGM Group Holdings are moving to New York, where they can access clean, renewable energy (hydro-powered). Similarly, SOS Limited is migrating to Wisconsin, a state with rich natural resources and renewable energy.
Bitcoin (BTC) Recovers as Hashrate Hits New All-Time High
Joining the hashrate in recovery, the price of Bitcoin has jumped above $51,000 after the weekend’s flash-crash led Bitcoin to trade as low as $42,874. Bitcoin now trades at $51,263 after reaching an intraday high of $51,934.
The Bitcoin price chart between December 4 and 7. Source: Tradingview
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