On Wednesday, the mining difficulty of the Bitcoin network surged by 3.6% to set a new all-time high.
Specifically, the difficulty index reached 92.67 trillion at block height 860,832, surpassing the previous peak of 90.67 trillion set in July.
This jump reflects heightened competition among miners, driven by record-breaking hashrate levels over the past week. It underscores the network’s growing resilience and security as more computational power is required to mine Bitcoin and more miners enter the space.
Impact of Rising Mining Difficulty
As more miners join the Bitcoin network, the difficulty level automatically adjusts every 2016 blocks to maintain a consistent block time of approximately 10 minutes. This adjustment is essential for network stability and is based on the total computational power of the network.
A higher difficulty level means that miners need more energy and resources to successfully mine Bitcoin. Conversely, if the number of miners decreases, the difficulty level lowers, making it easier to find new blocks. The recent increase in difficulty highlights the growing competition among miners for the limited rewards available.
Increased mining activity also enhances the network’s security, as the additional computational power contributes to greater decentralization.
However, despite these benefits, a rise in difficulty can pose challenges for smaller or solo miners, who may struggle to compete against large mining pools with substantial computational resources.
Solo Miner Secures Block Reward
Remarkably, this latest development coincides with a rare event where a solo Bitcoin miner successfully mined an entire Bitcoin block, securing a reward of $180,000. This achievement comes as a surprise, given the dominance of institutional miners with advanced rigs.
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
Solo miners typically face steep odds due to the immense computational power required. However, this success stands out against a record-high hashrate, demonstrating that individual miners can still achieve significant results, though such successes are infrequent.
Miners Dumping Bitcoin
Elsewhere, recent market data shows a significant reduction in the Bitcoin supply held by miners. After maintaining a steady trend, the supply began to drop on September 8, with a sharp decline observed by September 11.
Market watcher Ali Martinez highlighted that miners liquidated 30,000 BTC, valued at approximately $1.71 billion, since Monday.
This substantial sale suggests notable market movements, potentially driven by liquidity needs or concerns about future price trends.
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