The competition in the Bitcoin (BTC) mining industry is becoming increasingly fierce, with so-called second-tier operators narrowing the gap in actual hash rate with established leaders—indicating a more level playing field after the 2024 halving.
According to The Miner Mag, companies like Cipher Mining, Bitdeer, and HIVE Digital have rapidly expanded their actual hash rate after years of infrastructure growth, closing the distance with top players such as MARA Holdings, CleanSpark, and Cango.
"Their rise highlights how the middle tier of publicly listed miners—once far behind—has quickly scaled up production since the 2024 halving," The Miner Mag wrote in its latest Miner Weekly newsletter.
While MARA, CleanSpark, and Cango maintain their status as the top three publicly listed miners, competitors including IREN, Cipher, Bitdeer, and HIVE Digital have achieved significant year-over-year growth in actual hash rate.
In total, the top publicly listed miners reached an actual hash rate of 326 exahashes per second (EH/s) in September, more than doubling the level recorded a year ago. They now account for nearly one-third of the total Bitcoin network hash rate.
Hash rate represents the total computational power contributed by miners to secure the Bitcoin blockchain. However, actual hash rate measures on-chain performance, or the rate at which valid blocks are successfully mined.
For publicly traded miners, it is also a closer indicator of operational efficiency and revenue potential, making it a key metric ahead of the third-quarter earnings season.
In the race for market share, Bitcoin mining companies are taking on record levels of debt as they expand into new mining equipment, artificial intelligence infrastructure, and other capital-intensive ventures.
According to research from VanEck, the industry's total debt has soared to $12.7 billion, a significant increase from $2.1 billion a year ago. Researchers note that miners must continuously invest in next-generation hardware to maintain their share of the total Bitcoin hash rate and avoid falling behind competitors.
Some mining companies have turned to artificial intelligence and high-performance computing workloads to diversify revenue sources and offset the impact of declining profit margins after the 2024 Bitcoin halving, which will reduce block rewards to 3.125 BTC.
Related: Coinbase CEO: Hopes to move the entire startup lifecycle on-chain
Original article: “The Rise of Mid-Sized Bitcoin (BTC) Miners Reshapes the Competitive Landscape Post-Halving”
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