By
Bhushan Akolkar
May 17th, 2024
Only 19 days are left before the long-awaited Bitcoin halving. BTC mining difficulty sets to hit an all-time high, as a result, many miners may stop their business activities for a while.
Bitcoin halving is approaching fast, as the block remaining to be mined until the event hits 2,837 at the time of writing. These 19 days left before the day X will be a catalyst that will push the market up in the following months, similarly to the previous BTC halving events.
Bitcoin Mining
The mining difficulty is soaring upwards at the time of reporting it was at 15,958,652,328,578, as the hash rate stood at 125.52 Exahashes/s. The figure has been scaring most miners who are still using mining tools that have not been updated with the changing environment.
As a result, several miners might end up temporarily closing their operations until things normalize in a stable market. This might be until the operating cost gets to be lower than BTC price. In this perspective, the price which is currently trading slightly below $7,000 has to double and beyond after the halving to keep the mining operation profitable.
Mining companies will have to update their mining tools to match up with the difficult rise and rise in resource competition. One thing that will work in favor of the miners is the increase in Bitcoin demand and the reduction in its market supply.
This comes as institutional investors’ eye in investing in the crypto space, precisely Bitcoin and its future market. The retail traders who have largely embraced the BTC asset to an extent that it commands over 64% of the total crypto market.
BTC Halving Bigger Picture
The current Bitcoin halving is more complex in relation to BTC market price due to the ongoing coronavirus outbreak that has gripped the whole world in fear. In addition to the highly speculative nature of the crypto market, the volatility will increase as we approach the event, early next month.
The crypto market has formed a tendency to follow the Bitcoin market price in its volatility. Whenever Bitcoin price gets involved in a rally, almost all altcoins led by ETH and XRP follow suit.
The hype has made the altcoin market a booming industry that many investors are eyeing to gain profits from. According to a Twitter user by the name Credible Crypto, if someone invested in XRP over BTC prior to the last bull run, the XRP investment would be worth 1.5 times the value of a BTC investor. He continued to say that if the XRP coins were sold at the top, the returns would be 10 times more.
However, with the level of uncertainty due to the coronavirus, patience will be the best answer to all the worries and questions.