Bitcoin miners experienced a challenging month in August 2024, with revenue hitting the lowest point of the year, continuing a downward trend in the sector. According to sources, the total revenue generated by Bitcoin miners during August amounted to $851.36 million, a significant decline from July’s $927.35 million. This $99.75 million drop underscores the ongoing struggles within the mining industry and highlights the increasing difficulty and reduced profitability of mining Bitcoin in the current environment.
Factors Behind the Revenue Decline
The revenue decline is attributed to factors that have put pressure on miners. Firstly, there has been a noticeable reduction in transaction volumes, which directly impacts the fees earned by miners.
On-chain fees in August dropped by $4.14 million compared to the previous month, signaling a decrease in overall network activity. Moreover, mining difficulty has continued to rise, reaching an all-time high of 89.47 trillion in August, up from 86.87 trillion in July. This increase in difficulty means that the miners need to expend more computational power to mine the same amount of Bitcoin, reducing their profitability.
Bitcoin Miners Expected to Unload Over $5 Billion Following HalvingLeading Mining Pools and Their Impact
In August, Foundry USA and Antpool, two of the largest mining pools, mined 1,248 and 1,074 blocks, respectively. Foundry USA accounted for 29.10% of the total blocks mined, while Antpool contributed 25.04%.
Despite their significant contributions, the overall number of mined Bitcoins decreased slightly from July’s 14,725 BTC to 13,843 BTC in August. This reduction further strained the miners’ revenue, compounding the effects of increased difficulty and lower transaction fees.
The August revenue figure represents a 57% decrease from the peak of $1.93 billion in March 2024, when Bitcoin reached its all-time high of over $73,500. Although Bitcoin’s price has since more than doubled to around $57,315, the mining sector has not enjoyed a corresponding increase in revenue. The August figures mark the worst month for miners since September 2023, when they earned $727.79 million.
