Executive Summary
On November 20, 2019, Bitcoin traded at $8,027, down 2.2% over 24 hours and nearly 9% over the preceding week. The world’s largest cryptocurrency was in the midst of its worst monthly performance of the year, having shed approximately 40% from its July peak near $13,000. Yet beneath the bearish price action, something remarkable was happening: Bitcoin’s network hash rate had surged past 100 exahashes per second, reaching approximately 114 EH/s by late October — an all-time high. The disconnect between miners’ conviction and market sentiment created one of the most talked-about divergences in Bitcoin’s decade-long history.
The Numbers Unpacked
The data from November 20, 2019 painted a clear picture of a market under stress. Bitcoin’s market capitalization stood at approximately $145 billion, with the cryptocurrency changing hands at $8,027.27 according to CoinMarketCap’s daily snapshot. The 24-hour trading volume reached $20.7 billion, indicating significant market activity even as prices trended lower.
Ethereum, the second-largest cryptocurrency, traded at $175.70, reflecting a 1% decline over 24 hours and a 6.5% drop over the week. XRP sat at $0.2514, while Bitcoin Cash held at $244.24. The total cryptocurrency market capitalization hovered around $215 billion, a far cry from the levels seen during the 2017 bull run.
On Kraken, one of the largest cryptocurrency exchanges, daily trading volumes reached $74.8 million across all markets. REP (Augur) stood out as the day’s biggest mover, surging 19.4% to $12.24 — an outlier in an otherwise sea of red.
Historical Context
November 2019 marked a critical juncture in Bitcoin’s post-ICO bear market cycle. The cryptocurrency had peaked at nearly $14,000 in June 2019, fueled by renewed enthusiasm surrounding institutional adoption and the approaching block reward halving scheduled for May 2020. But the rally proved unsustainable.
Several factors contributed to the relentless November selloff. Most notably, the PlusToken Ponzi scheme — one of the largest cryptocurrency frauds in history, having allegedly defrauded investors of over $3 billion — was systematically liquidating its Bitcoin holdings. Reports indicated that PlusToken wallets were dumping approximately 1,300 BTC per day throughout November, creating constant downward pressure on the market. The scale of this selling was enormous relative to daily exchange volumes.
Simultaneously, miners themselves were contributing to selling pressure. As Bitcoin’s price dropped below profitability thresholds for operators with older equipment or higher electricity costs, many were forced to liquidate their BTC holdings to cover operational expenses. Bitcoin had fallen from $13,000 to $7,500 during the third and fourth quarters, and the prolonged price decline eroded miner margins month after month.
This dynamic — falling prices forcing miners to sell, which pushes prices lower still — is known as miner capitulation, and it had been accelerating through November. Bitmain and Bitfury, two of the largest mining operations globally, had both shuttered facilities and laid off workers in the preceding months.
Expert Consensus
Market analysts and on-chain researchers were divided on what the hash rate–price divergence signaled. The hash rate reaching all-time highs while price plumbed multi-month lows was interpreted by some as a classic bottom signal — miners investing in infrastructure despite bearish price action suggested conviction in Bitcoin’s long-term trajectory.
The Hash Ribbon indicator, a popular on-chain metric that tracks the relationship between Bitcoin’s hash rate and its price to identify miner capitulation periods, was flashing signals that had historically preceded major price recoveries. In previous cycles, miner capitulation events had often marked the final washout before sustained upward moves.
Others were more cautious, noting that the rising hash rate was partly a function of newer, more efficient ASIC miners coming online regardless of price. The deployment schedule for mining hardware operated on manufacturing timelines measured in months, meaning that equipment ordered during the $13,000 price peak was only now being installed and powered up. The hash rate increase, in this view, reflected lagging capital expenditure decisions rather than forward-looking confidence.
What was not disputed was the fundamental health of the Bitcoin network. With hash rate above 100 EH/s, executing a 51% attack would require hardware worth at least $1.4 billion, making Bitcoin the most computationally secure network on the planet by a wide margin.
Forward Outlook
With the halving just six months away, the macro setup for Bitcoin entering 2020 was building toward what many believed would be a pivotal year. The block reward reduction from 12.5 to 6.25 BTC would cut the daily supply of newly minted Bitcoin from approximately 1,800 to 900 BTC — a reduction of roughly $7.2 million per day in sell pressure at current prices.
Historical precedent suggested that halving events had preceded major bull runs, though the sample size remained small: Bitcoin had only experienced two previous halvings, in 2012 and 2016. In both cases, the price began appreciating in the months following the supply reduction, eventually reaching new all-time highs within 12-18 months.
For November 2019, however, the immediate concern was whether Bitcoin could hold the $7,500 support level that had been tested multiple times during the month. A break below that level could trigger another wave of forced liquidations and miner capitulation, potentially driving prices toward the $6,000 range. Conversely, a bounce from current levels would mark the third time Bitcoin had found buyers near $7,500-$8,000, potentially establishing a solid base for recovery.
The day’s trading saw Bitcoin oscillating in a narrow range around $8,027, with neither bulls nor bears able to establish decisive control. Volume was moderate, and funding rates on derivatives exchanges remained neutral — the market was waiting for a catalyst. In the absence of one, the path of least resistance appeared to be further consolidation, with the halving clock ticking steadily toward a supply shock that would fundamentally alter the market’s equilibrium.
Disclaimer: This article is for informational purposes only and does not constitute financial advice. Cryptocurrency investments carry significant risk. Always conduct your own research before making investment decisions.
114 EH/s while price dropped 40% from july peak. miners literally doubling down while traders panicked. who do you think was right?
miners were right. btc went from 8k to 60k in under a year after that divergence. hash rate leading price is the most reliable signal we have
That hashrate-price divergence was one of the strongest buy signals in Bitcoin history. Price followed within 6 months.
within 6 months is underselling it. the halving was months away and miners were accumulating. that was the tell
the fact that $8k felt like a crash back then tells you everything about how fast things move in this space
40% from 13k to 8k and people called it a crash. we just watched btc go from 109k to 75k in 2026 and barely flinched
114 EH/s was insane for 2019. the hashrate has done nothing but climb since. miners dont expand if they think the network is dying