Bitcoin mining difficulty hits record 127.6T; profit peaks amid price dip
Bitcoin mining difficulty surged to a record 127.6 trillion hashes at block height 908,373, driven by rising network hashrate and renewed miner activity. CoinWarz forecasts a 2–3% downward adjustment to around 123.7 trillion on August 9 as average block time edges above the 10-minute target. The Bitcoin mining difficulty spike enhances blockchain security and underpins Bitcoin’s stock-to-flow ratio—now twice that of gold—but compresses mining profitability. Miner earnings nonetheless reached a post-halving high of $52.6 million per exahash per day, thanks to hardware efficiency gains and sustained price strength. Bitcoin’s price dipped about 4% to test $104,000 amid U.S.-Russia tensions. CryptoQuant data show long-term holders maintain strong unrealized gains, keeping market structure largely bullish, while short-term holders hover near breakeven, raising volatility risk. The upcoming difficulty drop may relieve smaller miners and normalize margins. Traders should monitor miner revenue, block times and network security metrics; price impact is likely neutral in the short term, with long-term stability intact.
Neutral
The record high in Bitcoin mining difficulty reflects sustained growth in network hashrate and intense miner competition. While the upcoming biweekly adjustment downward will ease cost and hardware pressures for miners, the current spike improves blockchain security and reinforces Bitcoin’s scarcity via its stock-to-flow mechanism. Miner profitability remains robust thanks to efficiency gains and stable prices, supporting continued investment. Short-term price volatility may arise from geopolitical tensions, but automatic difficulty adjustments, capped supply and strong long-term holder activity underpin a stable market structure. Difficulty changes primarily affect miner revenue and network health rather than driving immediate price moves, leading to a neutral price outlook. Traders should watch miner margins, block times and security metrics for signals of market shifts.