Bitcoin miners face a tightening squeeze as network difficulty reaches all-time highs while revenue per unit of hashrate continues its year-long decline, creating a challenging environment for operations heading into the 2024 halving cycle.
TL;DR
- Bitcoin mining revenue per EH/s drops to 2.6 BTC per day in June 2023, down from 5.1 BTC in January 2022
- Network hashrate hits all-time high of 516.61 EH/s on June 11, with difficulty peaking at 52.35 trillion on June 14
- Foundry USA dominates with 32.47% of global hashrate, mining 1,404 of 4,324 blocks discovered in June
- Miners produced 27,025 BTC in June across 37 active mining pools
- Revenue decline accelerates as miners prepare for halving expected around April 2024
Hashrate and Difficulty Set New Records
Bitcoin’s network hashrate reached an unprecedented 516.61 exahashes per second (EH/s) on June 11, 2023, at block height 793,868, marking a significant milestone for the world’s largest blockchain. Just three days later, on June 14, mining difficulty also tapped a new all-time high of 52.35 trillion at block height 794,304, following a 2.18% upward retarget.
Over the 2,016-block difficulty window, miners maintained an average hashrate of approximately 359 EH/s. A total of 37 mining pools contributed hashrate to the Bitcoin network during this period, with 16 of them generating at least one exahash or more of computing power.
The difficulty increase proved temporary, however. On June 28, at block height 796,320, the network experienced a 3.26% downward adjustment, bringing difficulty back down to 50.65 trillion. This correction suggests some miners may have capitulated or curtailed operations in response to the rising costs and declining revenue.
Revenue Squeeze Deepens for Miners
While the hashrate milestone reflects growing investment in mining infrastructure, the economics tell a more sobering story. Data from theminermag.com shows that the amount of BTC produced per day by a single EH/s of operating hashrate has been in steady decline since January 2022.
In January 2022, miners earned approximately 5.1 BTC per day per EH/s. By June 2023, that figure had fallen to just 2.6 BTC — a decline of nearly 49%. May recorded a slightly higher rate of 3 BTC per EH/s, while April came in at 2.7 BTC, indicating that June’s revenue squeeze was particularly acute.
Over the month of June, Bitcoin miners collectively discovered 4,324 block rewards, generating approximately 27,025 newly minted BTC. With Bitcoin trading around $26,336 during this period, the total value of mined Bitcoin reached roughly $711 million for the month.
Pool Competition Intensifies
Foundry USA solidified its position as the dominant Bitcoin mining pool in June, discovering 1,404 blocks and commanding 32.47% of the global hashrate. Antpool held the second spot with 923 blocks and a 21.35% share. Together, these two pools controlled more than half of all Bitcoin mining power.
F2pool secured third place with 593 blocks, followed by Binance Pool with 382 blocks and Viabtc with 373 blocks. These three pools collectively accounted for 31.17% of the global hashrate, leaving the remaining 32 mining pools to share roughly 15% of network computing power.
The concentration of hashrate among a handful of major pools raises ongoing questions about Bitcoin’s decentralization. While individual miners can redirect their hashrate at any time, the practical reality is that network security and block production rest largely in the hands of five entities.
Halving Looms as Margins Compress
The revenue squeeze takes on greater urgency when viewed against the upcoming Bitcoin halving, expected to occur around April 21, 2024. At that point, the block reward will drop from 6.25 BTC to 3.125 BTC, instantly cutting miner revenue from new issuance in half.
With approximately 43,000 blocks remaining before the halving, miners are projected to discover roughly 270,275 BTC before the reward reduction takes effect. For mining operations already operating on thin margins due to declining per-EH/s revenue, the halving presents a significant operational challenge.
Why This Matters
The disconnect between Bitcoin’s rising hashrate and falling miner revenue per unit of computing power signals a maturing but increasingly competitive industry. Mining operations that cannot maintain efficiency advantages or secure low-cost energy face mounting pressure as both network difficulty and the approaching halving squeeze profitability. The dominance of large pools like Foundry USA and Antpool also highlights the industrial scale of modern Bitcoin mining, where individual participants are increasingly rare and corporate miners drive network security.
This article is for informational purposes only and does not constitute financial advice. Cryptocurrency mining involves significant risk and technical complexity. Always conduct your own research before making investment decisions.
2.6 btc per eh/s is brutal. halving cut that in half again and miners with old hardware and expensive power got wiped out
foundry usa at 32.47% of global hashrate is concerning concentration. we traded decentralization for basically one dominant us pool
its worse now. foundry plus the top 3 pools control over 60% of all btc mining. the cornell decentralization study keeps aging well