Bitcoin Hashprice Nears 5-Month High After Record Difficulty Drop since China Ban
Bitcoin’s hashprice has surged to its highest level since early February, rising above $58.5/PH/s following a 7.4% decline in network difficulty—the steepest drop since the aftermath of China’s 2021 mining ban.
The rebound in hashprice, a key profitability metric for miners, comes alongside Bitcoin’s market recovery above $108,000. The combination of rising BTC prices and lower difficulty has offered much-needed profitability relief to miners, many of whom have faced margin compression since Q4.
The latest difficulty adjustment, which occurred over the weekend, slightly exceeded the 7.3% drop seen during the miner capitulation of December 2022, at the depths of the previous bear market. This adjustment follows a multi-week decline in the network’s seven-day average hashrate, likely driven by curtailment measures at U.S.-based mining sites during recent summer heatwaves.
Foundry USA Pool, the dominant mining pool in North America, experienced sharp, intermittent hashrate reductions over the past several weeks, pointing to widespread capacity cutbacks. However, recent data suggests that network hashrate is now stabilizing, with signs of recovery as temperatures ease and curtailment pressures subside.
The hashprice recovery offers a temporary reprieve for miners who have been operating at or below breakeven following April’s halving and a prolonged period of depressed transaction fees. With hashprice nearing $60/PH/s, miners are expected to take advantage of the improved economics, though the outlook remains uncertain amid the potential for renewed hashrate growth and difficulty increases.
Meanwhile, Bitcoin’s transaction fees remain subdued, accounting for just 1.062% of block rewards in June so far. Over the past 24 hours, that share has fallen further to 0.51%. If hashrate continues to recover, the next difficulty adjustment is projected to edge upward.
