Bitcoin mining difficulty has climbed to an ATH of 136 trillion, putting pressure on mining profitability.
By Godfrey Benjamin
Editor Julia Sakovich
Updated
3 mins read
Bitcoin BTC $112 234 24h volatility: 0.9% Market cap: $2.23 T Vol. 24h: $30.50 B mining difficulty has surged to a record high of 136 trillion. Coming from a previous all-time high (ATH) of 134.7 trillion, this metric sets the tone for strong competition among miners, as it also reflects the improved efficiency of mining hardware. The new high was recorded sometime on Sept. 6, 2025.
The competition to add a new block to the blockchain and secure the block reward is getting steeper by the day. Miners are required to have more computing power to solve the puzzles required to validate transactions and earn rewards.
This is the fifth consecutive increase that this metric has seen since June. It climbed to a record high of 127.6 trillion around Aug. 4. This consistent increase suggests that more miners are joining the network, a move that serves to boost security and decentralization. Also, this trend reversed a brief decline in June, when the difficulty dropped to 116.9 trillion.
As it stands, Bitcoin’s hashrate has shown signs of cooling from its summer peaks. For context, hashrate is the total computing power required to secure the Bitcoin network. It has remained near record levels, and the recent divergence between hashrate and difficulty is drawing strong attention. Analysts are concerned that the sustained difficulty increases may stiffen margins,
This is particularly true for those smaller operators who do not have access to low-cost energy or state-of-the-art equipment. Moreso, this reflects a broader trend of industrial-scale mining firms consolidating control over block production. This spike in Bitcoin Mining difficulty is followed by an increase in operational costs for electricity and cooling. On the other hand, revenue per terahash is falling.
Those faced with a bigger problem are miners with older or less efficient rigs. For this category of small miners, the economics are becoming increasingly challenging, and they may eventually be forced to shut down their machines or sell reserves to maintain liquidity.
At the same time, Bitcoin mining profitability is facing some strain, and small miners are forced to liquidate their mined coins. They have had to increase the pace of selling their Bitcoin holdings to cover operational expenses. Bigger public mining facilities are not deeply affected by this situation as they have access to financing or hedging strategies.
Meanwhile, American Bitcoin, a Bitcoin mining company in the United States, has finally gone public on the Nasdaq stock exchange.
The firm, which is backed by Donald Trump Jr. and Eric Trump, entered into a merger with Gryphon Digital Mining (NASDAQ-CM: GRYP) to achieve this move. The move to Nasdaq was completed earlier this month.
Post merger, the company now operates under the American Bitcoin name and trades under the ticker ABTC. This news has helped the Bitcoin price slip into consolidation as of writing. The coin is now valued at $111,821, up 0.64% in 24 hours.
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Benjamin Godfrey is a blockchain enthusiast and journalist who relishes writing about the real life applications of blockchain technology and innovations to drive general acceptance and worldwide integration of the emerging technology. His desire to educate people about cryptocurrencies inspires his contributions to renowned blockchain media and sites.
