Bitcoin Miners Could Face Crisis After BTC Price Falls 50% From Peak
Bitcoin’s price has dropped by 50% since October, falling to below $63,000—a level close to, or under, some miners’ production costs. Estimates for the average cost to mine a Bitcoin range between $70,000 and $80,000, though this varies widely depending on electricity rates, mining hardware, and operational scale. Publicly traded miners generally have lower costs; the current median is $60,000, while costs range from $39,208 for efficient firms like Iris Energy to over $106,000 for NYDIG. As prices near or dip below production costs, high-cost miners may curtail operations or shut down, leading to slower hash rate growth and industry consolidation. A 13% drop in Bitcoin mining difficulty is expected soon, which could provide some relief for active miners. The sharp price plunge—over 25% in a week—has triggered over $2 billion in crypto derivatives liquidations, with more than half related to Bitcoin contracts.
