Bitcoin’s Hashrate Takes a Nosedive: Miners Grapple With Plummeting Profits

Bitcoin’s Hashrate Takes a Nosedive: Miners Grapple With Plummeting Profits

Tough Terrain for Bitcoin Miners

The Bitcoin network has experienced a significant shift in its computational capacity, shedding approximately 44 exahash per second (EH/s) over the past four days. The network’s hashrate, which recently peaked at 824 EH/s, has now settled at 780 EH/s, based on the seven-day simple moving average (SMA). This decline of 44,000 petahash per second (PH/s) coincides with a drop in hashprice—the projected earnings in either U.S. dollars or bitcoin (BTC) per petahash—from $59.29 to $53.41.

Factors Behind the Hashrate Decline

The drop in revenue stems from bitcoin’s 3.9% decline against the U.S. dollar over the past seven days. This has caused block intervals to slightly increase, averaging 10 minutes and 2 seconds, which could lead to a minor difficulty adjustment on January 12 at block height 878,976. The expected adjustment, a decrease of 0.3% to 0.4%, might provide only limited relief for miners.

So far, miners have earned $409.13 million, including $5.65 million in transaction fees, according to The Block’s data. High-priority transaction fees currently stand at 4 satoshis per virtual byte (sat/vB), equivalent to $0.53 per transaction. However, miner earnings from fees remain relatively low, reflecting reduced network activity. On January 1, Bitcoin processed just 292,213 transfers, while the highest daily total so far in 2025 was recorded on January 9 at 534,013 transfers.

Challenges for Bitcoin Miners

The declining hashrate and hashprice, combined with subdued transaction volumes and minimal fee revenue, present significant challenges for bitcoin miners. The modest upcoming difficulty adjustment is unlikely to provide sufficient relief, leaving miners to grapple with mounting operational pressures.

Miners are exploring ways to navigate these difficulties, with many relying on advancements in energy efficiency and scaling strategies to sustain profitability. However, the current landscape underscores the precarious balance miners must maintain in a volatile market.