Bitcoin miners have reported an increase in daily earnings and gross profits for the second consecutive month, reaching their highest levels since April. A JPMorgan research shows that the largest cryptocurrency’s rally has outpaced network hashrate growth, leading to increased mining profitability.
Revenue and Profit Increase
JPMorgan estimates that Bitcoin miners earned an average of $57,100 per exahash in daily block rewards last month, marking a 10% increase compared to November. However, analysts Reginald Smith and Charles Pearce noted that 'daily revenue and gross profit per EH/s is still 43% and 52% below pre-halving levels, respectively.'
Hashrate and Mining Difficulty
The network’s hashrate increased by 6% in December, reaching an average of 779 EH/s. The JPMorgan report stated that the hashrate growth is expected to be 54% in 2024, which is lower than the 103% increase observed in 2023. Additionally, mining difficulty rose by 7% from the previous month, being 27% higher than the levels prior to the reward halving in April.
Market Capitalization and Performance
The total market capitalization of the 14 publicly traded Bitcoin miners tracked by the bank fell by 23% to $28 billion in December, compared to a 52% increase in November. In contrast to Bitcoin’s approximately 120% rise last year, the TeraWulf (WULF) miner outperformed Bitcoin with a 136% increase.
Profitability for Bitcoin miners improved as the value increase of the cryptocurrency outpaced the growth in the network’s hashrate. However, they still fall significantly short of pre-halving levels, indicating challenges in covering operational costs. JPMorgan’s report provides crucial insights into the future profitability of Bitcoin mining and the dynamics of the network.
