The fourth Bitcoin halving on April 19 has spurred considerable transformations in the mining industry. The mining reward decreased from 6.25 BTC to 3.125 BTC, which imposed a huge challenge for miners.
Before this halving, the Bitcoin hit a high of $73,794 on March 14. While Bitcoin trades between $68,500 and $61,200, the hashprice, which shows daily earnings per petahash per second (PH/s), ranges between $47.88 and $53.
To achieve hashprices above $100 per PH/s, the market price of bitcoins needs to rise substantially. Different analysts calculate this range to be between $135500 and $175000. This factor shows the positive relationship between the market price and miners’ revenues. It also shows the pressures of miners, where elevating mining difficulty alters the financial model.
Mining difficulty has risen by 4.12% this month and is expected to rise again shortly. Such adjustments put further pressure on miners, meaning they need higher Bitcoin prices to remain profitable. Notably, hashprices are still below pre-halving values ranging between $105 and $125 per PH/s. This evident gap explains why Bitcoin's Price needs to skyrocket to support mining companies.
Moreover, on-chain fees depend on market activity and can affect miners’ income. If Bitcoin’s price is at the $ 80,000 to $ 90,000 price level, for instance, the transaction fees are likely to spike, leading to even higher revenue by miners. However, these fees are not fixed and depend heavily on the market factors constantly in this line of business. Thus, the miners have to be safe and ready for all the potential changes that may occur.
Technology is also used to determine the vision of the future of Bitcoin mining. Manufacturers, including Bitmain, Microbt, Auradine, and Canaan, have developed new mining rig models that increase efficiency. For instance, Bitmain’s most recent model is Antminer U3S21EXPH, which is still dominant with a hash rate of 860 TH/s. Such advancements make it easier for miners to earn higher profits from their mining operations despite low Bitcoin prices.
Some of these technological advancements make mining more effective overall. When miners aim to make the most profit from their operations, adopting new technologies is compulsory. This makes it essential for mining companies to be very proactive in embracing the latest technology in mining equipment and techniques.