Bitcoin miners are breathing a little easier this week. As the price of Bitcoin pushes back above $87,000, the network’s hashrate continues its relentless climb, reaching a seven-day simple moving average of 837 exahashes per second (EH/s) on March 24, 2025 — a significant jump from 814 EH/s just one week earlier. The numbers tell a story of an industry that refuses to slow down, even as profit margins remain razor-thin for many operators.
TL;DR
- Bitcoin network hashrate hits 837 EH/s (7-day SMA), up from 814 EH/s the previous week
- Difficulty adjustment increased by 1.43% to 113.76T on March 23
- USD hashprice rises to $48.80 per PH/s/day, up 2.54% week-over-week
- Bitcoin price climbs to approximately $87,500, boosting miner revenue potential
- Transaction fees increase 14% week-over-week, averaging 0.0406 BTC per block
- An estimated 8% difficulty increase looms for the next adjustment on April 5
Hashrate and Difficulty: The Relentless Climb Continues
The Bitcoin network’s computational power shows no signs of peaking. The seven-day simple moving average of hashrate climbed from 814 EH/s to 837 EH/s over the past week, while the 30-day SMA stands at 815 EH/s. This sustained growth comes despite challenging economics for smaller miners, suggesting that large-scale operations and those with access to cheap electricity continue to expand aggressively.
On March 23, the network completed its latest difficulty adjustment, pushing the parameter up by 1.43% to 113.76 trillion. Blocks during this period are being found at an average interval of approximately 9 minutes and 52 seconds — slightly faster than the 10-minute target — which signals that hashrate growth is outpacing the current difficulty setting. Luxor estimates suggest the next adjustment, expected around April 5, could bring an increase of roughly 8%, which would represent one of the larger upward adjustments in recent months.
Hashprice Recovery Offers Miners a Glimmer of Hope
For miners watching their bottom lines closely, the modest recovery in hashprice provides some welcome relief. Bitcoin’s USD hashprice increased by 2.54% over the week, moving from $47.59 to $48.80 per PH/s/day. However, in BTC-denominated terms, hashprice actually declined by 1.19%, from 0.00056656 BTC to 0.00055981 BTC per PH/s/day, reflecting the natural erosion that occurs when hashrate grows faster than the network’s block subsidy.
At roughly $49 per PH/s/day, hashprice sits at or near breakeven for many mining operations depending on their electricity costs and machine efficiency. This dynamic creates a challenging environment where only the most efficient operators — those running latest-generation ASICs like the Antminer S21 series with power costs below $0.05 per kilowatt-hour — can generate meaningful profits. The hashrate forward market is currently pricing in an average hashprice of $49.86 over the next six months, with both USD and BTC contracts trading in backwardation.
Miner Revenue and Fee Dynamics
Over the past week, Bitcoin miners collected approximately 3,250 BTC in total block rewards, equivalent to roughly $237 million at current prices. Transaction fees accounted for 1.75% of total block rewards, totaling about 41 BTC or approximately $3.44 million. While the fee contribution remains relatively modest compared to block subsidies, it represents a meaningful improvement from the prior week.
Average transaction fees per block increased by 14% week-over-week, from 0.0357 BTC to 0.0406 BTC. Fee projection models from Luxor estimate approximately 0.06 BTC per block per day for the coming week, partly driven by anticipation of a Taproot Wizards mint that could push on-chain activity higher.
Mining Industry Consolidation Accelerates
The broader mining industry continues to undergo significant structural changes. Tether recently raised its stake in Bitdeer to 21%, according to SEC filings, signaling stablecoin giant Tether’s deepening involvement in mining infrastructure. Meanwhile, Riot Platforms entered into a non-binding term sheet to acquire certain assets of Rhodium, reflecting the ongoing trend of larger players absorbing smaller operations to achieve economies of scale.
Bitcoin mining stocks showed mixed performance over the week. The Bitcoin Mining Stock Index increased by 7.04%, but individual stocks painted a varied picture. Hut 8 gained 3.70%, Riot Platforms rose 3.38%, and GREE surged 8.54%. On the downside, Canaan dropped 11.93%, Bitfarms fell 10.62%, and Marathon Digital declined 5.64%. This dispersion highlights the market’s differentiation between miners based on their operational efficiency, expansion plans, and balance sheet strength.
The Hardware Landscape
Nvidia’s announcement of its latest data center GPU, the Blackwell Ultra, adds another dimension to the mining-adjacent hardware ecosystem. While Bitcoin mining relies on application-specific integrated circuits (ASICs) rather than GPUs, the development highlights the broader competition for semiconductor manufacturing capacity and energy infrastructure. Mining firms that have diversified into high-performance computing and AI workloads — such as Core Scientific and Hut 8 — stand to benefit from the growing demand for GPU compute power.
Why This Matters
The sustained growth in Bitcoin’s hashrate despite compressed profit margins demonstrates the long-term conviction of mining operators. Each difficulty increase reinforces the network’s security, making Bitcoin more resilient against potential attacks. For investors, the hashprice recovery — while modest — signals that the post-halving adjustment period is gradually stabilizing. The upcoming difficulty adjustment of approximately 8% will test whether miners can maintain their expansion trajectory, particularly as energy costs and regulatory pressures continue to shape the competitive landscape. The mining sector’s ongoing consolidation, with larger firms acquiring smaller operations and diversifying into AI compute, suggests that the industry is maturing rapidly and that only the most efficient and well-capitalized players will thrive in the years ahead.
Disclaimer: This article is for informational purposes only and does not constitute financial advice. Cryptocurrency mining involves significant risk, and profitability depends on factors including electricity costs, hardware efficiency, and market conditions. Always conduct your own research before making investment decisions.
837 EH/s with blocks coming in at 9:52 average. That 8% difficulty bump on April 5 is going to squeeze the small miners hard. Only ones surviving this are hydro-powered operations.
Hashprice at $48.80 per PH/s/day is still below where it was pre-halving. Revenue is up but so is competition. The 14% fee increase helps but not enough for anyone running S19s at this point.
^ running S19 Pros and can confirm margins are brutal. the jump from 814 to 837 EH/s in one week is insane
Difficulty at 113.76T and climbing. We are approaching territory where only sovereign-scale miners can stay profitable. This is the centralization nobody wants to talk about.
the fact that hashrate keeps climbing while BTC is still down 12% from the January $99.5K high tells you everything about long term miner conviction