Bitcoin mining update: Stocks cool off, miners send BTC to exchanges to prep for halving

1 year ago

In July, Bitcoin (BTC) mining stocks continued their affirmative tally successful 2023 with the apical 10 stocks by marketplace headdress gaining 23.10% implicit the period connected average, with an year-to-date instrumentality of 277.34%.

In comparison, BTC terms has mislaid 3.59% successful July arsenic it failed to build enactment supra $30,000 for the sixth week since June 2023. Despite a hard July, BTC terms is inactive up 78.88% successful 2023.

Bitcoin mining stocks performance.

The diminution successful Bitcoin’s terms reduced the profitability of miners. To marque conditions much challenging for miners, the mining trouble reached a caller all-time high, reducing miner profitability.

Historical trends amusement that the network’s hashrate could proceed to emergence starring up to the halving connected April 26, 2024 arsenic miners summation their hash powerfulness by installing caller businesslike machines.

Besides adding to their processing power, miners are besides adopting different hedging techniques similar selling Bitcoin futures to fastener successful existent prices.

As the network's hashrate is expected to summation done the twelvemonth arsenic miners reinvest successful caller machines and follow different hedging techniques, miner profitability and banal valuations volition proceed to look unit successful the lead-up to the event.

Bitcoin hashrate projected to turn until halving

While BTC terms has accrued by astir 80% year-to-date, the mining trouble besides accrued by 51%, offsetting the emergence successful profitability owed to terms surge.

In mid-July, Bitcoin's trouble acceptable a caller all-time precocious of 53.91 trillion units. The summation successful trouble triggered a capitulation lawsuit successful the sector, which was already reeling nether pressure astatine the commencement of the month.

BTC/USD terms illustration with hash ribbon indicator. Source: TradingView

Bitcoin’s Hashprice index, a metric utilized to quantify the mean regular miner net from 1 TH/s crossed the industry, dropped from $78.30 per TH/s connected July 1 to $72 per TH/s by the extremity of July, per Hashrate Index data.

Hashprice scale chart. Source: Hashrate Index

The network’s hashrate deflated successful the 2nd fractional of July, resulting successful a 2% diminution successful its trouble successful the accommodation connected July 26.

The accommodation volition apt easiness the unit connected miners, but lone slightly. The full hashrate is inactive ranging supra past month’s lows aft rising consistently since the commencement of 2023.

Moreover, humanities trends suggest that miners volition apt proceed adding to their fleet, which could cramp profitability further.

Bitcoin regular hashrate. Source: Glassnode

Before the erstwhile halving Bitcoin’s hashrate grew consistently for a year, peaking lone a period earlier the halving successful May 2020. The existent emergence successful the network’s hashrate is showing a akin trend.

Miners are preparing for the halving

Besides expanding hashpower, the miners are adopting assorted strategies to hole for the event.

These strategies impact improving the currency travel and profits of their operations by managing the existing and recently mined BTC earlier the halving.

In the erstwhile cycle, Bitcoin miners had started accumulating BTC a twelvemonth earlier the lawsuit and began unloading lone aft the rewards were slashed. However, with little than 9 months oregon 3 quarters near for the adjacent halving, the inclination hasn’t repeated yet. Miners were seen sending ample amounts of BTC to exchanges.

The one-hop proviso of miners, which represents the coins received from mining pools, dipped toward a 2023 debased successful July. 

Bitcoin one-hop supply. Source: Coin Metrics

Data from Bitfinex besides shows that miner inflow to exchanges is part of a de-risking strategy to hedge their BTC connected derivatives exchanges. For instance, selling BTC one-year futures allows miners to fastener successful a selling terms of $30,000 for adjacent year.

Some miners could besides beryllium selling to amended their currency balances earlier the halving.

Miners are selling grounds amounts of recently mined #Bitcoin to screen operational costs. Despite the prolonged carnivore market, mining firms similar @Hut8Mining , @Foundry & @Brains stay assured and bullish connected #BTC's future. Many are looking to derisk their operations by hedging successful the… pic.twitter.com/xVyAmb8BTE

— Son of a Tech (@SonOfATech) July 26, 2023

According to information from The MinerMag, nationalist miners person liquidated astir each of their recently mined Bitcoin successful the past 2 months.

Meanwhile, Bitcoin mining stocks person continued their awesome affirmative rally from the commencement of the twelvemonth and could beryllium enroute to different affirmative monthly closing successful July.

Related: Buying Bitcoin is preferable to BTC mining successful astir circumstances — Analysis

Notably, miner stocks were fueled by reports of a $500 cardinal concern by the U.S.-based concern money Vanguard, a $7.2 trillion plus absorption firm. The money added to their allocations of RIOT and MARA successful definite indices.

The imaginable for further upside could beryllium triggered by an ongoing short-squeeze arsenic Marathon Digital Holdings, Riot Platforms and Cipher Mining are heavy shorted, with 20-25% of their interval shares, according to Fintel data.

Nevertheless, the mining stocks showed archetypal motion of weakness successful the 2nd fractional of July, arsenic astir mining stocks recorded 2 antagonistic play closings.

Given that the contention successful the Bitcoin mining manufacture is expected to summation passim the year, miners’ profitability and banal valuations whitethorn stay nether accent starring up to halving.

This nonfiction is for wide accusation purposes and is not intended to beryllium and should not beryllium taken arsenic ineligible oregon concern advice. The views, thoughts, and opinions expressed present are the author’s unsocial and bash not needfully bespeak oregon correspond the views and opinions of Cointelegraph.

This nonfiction does not incorporate concern proposal oregon recommendations. Every concern and trading determination involves risk, and readers should behaviour their ain probe erstwhile making a decision.

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