Increased selling activity from Bitcoin miners is linked to declining revenues following the recent halving event. Over the past week, Bitcoin (BTC) has dropped by 4.5%, hitting a monthly low of $65,000. This decline is partly due to the heightened selling from mining entities.
According to CryptoQuant’s latest weekly report, the amount of BTC transferred from miners to exchanges has reached a two-month high, driven by a drop in their earnings due to lower transaction fees.
Miner Selling Hits Two-Month High
On June 9, BTC transfers from the btc.com mining pool to Binance surged, peaking at over 3,000 BTC per hour, the highest in two months. The following day, miners sold at least 1,200 BTC via over-the-counter desks, marking the highest daily volume since late March, when 1,600 BTC were sold.
Large mining companies, such as the U.S.-based Marathon Digital, have also ramped up their sales. Marathon Digital sold 1,400 BTC in June, representing 8% of its total holdings, a significant increase from the 390 BTC sold in May.
The surge in miner selling comes as revenues remain depressed post-halving. Daily miner revenues have dropped to around $35 million, a 55% decrease from the $78 million peak in March.
Bitcoin transaction fees have also plummeted, with daily fees now averaging around 65 BTC, down from 117 BTC before the halving. Despite a record number of transactions on the network recently, median transaction fees in USD terms remain low.
Miners Face High Hashrate
In addition to lower revenues, miners are contending with a high network hashrate, which has only decreased by 4% since the April halving. This high hashrate demands more computing power, energy, and time to validate transactions and add blocks to the blockchain, placing additional financial pressure on miners.
Currently, Bitcoin’s hashrate is at 599 EH/s, slightly down from the pre-halving rate of 622 EH/s. Miners are now vying for reduced block rewards amid increased competition and operational costs.
CryptoQuant analysts suggest that periods of low miner revenues coupled with a high hashrate could signal potential price bottoms. It remains to be seen how low Bitcoin’s price will go before a market recovery occurs.
