In the month of August, data from bitcoin on-chain analysis platform Bitbo revealed that miners of the largest cryptocurrency experienced a significant decline in revenue generation. The figures showed that BTC mining activities only secured $827 million, marking a more than 10% decrease from the previous month’s $927.35 million. This downturn also represented a 57% drop from the sector’s peak performance in March 2024, where it earned over $1.9 billion.
On top of the revenue decrease, on-chain fees faced a similar fate. The Block reported that network participants received approximately $20.76 million in the past month, which falls short by $4.14 million compared to July’s total. This drop becomes even more striking when considering that the blockchain attracted over $281 million in transaction fees back in April against a mining income of $1.5 billion.
Bitcoin Mining Output and Difficulty
In addition to the decline in revenue and on-chain fees, the number of BTC mined in August also saw a slight decrease, going from about 14,725 in July to 13,843. This decrease made last month the worst revenue period for miners since September 2023, when they earned approximately $727 million. Furthermore, there has been a continuous rise in mining difficulty, reaching an all-time high of 89.47 trillion in August, up from 86.87 trillion in July.
Bitcoin Whales and Price Struggles
Despite the challenges faced by miners, there has been a notable increase in the number of Bitcoin whales. Crypto analytics platform Santiment shared that the tally of those holding at least 100 BTC grew by 283 over the past month, bringing the total number of wallets holding more than 100 BTC to 16,120, the highest level in nearly a year and a half. This surge in holding activity occurred amidst recent price struggles for the trillion-dollar cryptocurrency.
Data from CoinGecko shows that Bitcoin has experienced a 1.5% decline in the past 24 hours and lost nearly 10% of its value over the last seven days. During this period, its price fluctuated between $57,383 and $64,066 as it grappled to maintain its $60,000 support level.
The data points to a challenging time for Bitcoin miners as they navigate decreasing revenue, on-chain fees, and mining output alongside rising mining difficulty. However, the increase in Bitcoin whale numbers suggests continued interest and investment in the cryptocurrency, despite its recent price struggles.