Bitcoin mining difficulty increased again in 2023, reaching a new all-time high. Bitcoin “difficulty” is an important aspect of the network that governs the rate at which new blocks are added to the blockchain at any given time.
Bitcoin mining difficulty reached a new high of 67.96T.
According to data from BTC Blockchain Explorer, the Bitcoin network experienced a significant correction at block height 818,496. This caused the blockchain’s difficulty to increase by 5.07%, reaching an all-time high of 67.96T.
Mining difficulty is an essential feature in the Bitcoin blockchain that measures how much power is needed to verify a block of transactions. Increasing mining difficulty values mean higher demand on the Bitcoin network, while lower difficulty values mean there are fewer miners on the network.
Bitcoin mining difficulty brought about a mining difficulty adjustment at block height 818496. Mining difficulty continued to break record highs, reaching 67.96T, an increase of 5.07%. The current average hashrate of the entire network is 504.80EH/s. https://t.co/vgAkEgyDOF
— Wu Blockchain (@WuBlockchain) November 26, 2023
It is worth noting that the indicator has been trending upward over the past few weeks. In fact, the latest mining difficulty values represent the sixth consecutive increase in the last six adjustments.
Interestingly, the new mining difficulty values exceeded the blockchain’s initial expectations. Initially, Bitcoin mining difficulty was expected to only reach 67.14T, an increase of about 3.8% in the recent adjustment.
The network hash rate, which measures the total computing power for BTC mining, has also increased. According to BTC Blockchain Explorer, the current average hash rate of the Bitcoin network is 504.8 EH/s, a 3.76% increase from the previous hash rate of 486.5 EH/s.
Some of the factors contributing to the increase in Bitcoin mining difficulty include BTC’s recent price performance, recent surge in network activity, and surge in transaction fees. And as the indicator continues to rise, miners will likely continue to face the challenge of maintaining profitability.
BTC price overview
As of this writing, Bitcoin is worth $37,510, reflecting a 0.6% price increase over the past day. The top cryptocurrency appears to be breaking away from the $38,000 price mark, but has managed to retain most of its gains during the weekly period.
Bitcoin price has risen more than 2.7% over the past seven days, according to data from CoinGecko. Meanwhile, the market leader highlighted its strong performance in November, recording a 10% increase last month.
Bitcoin remains the largest cryptocurrency in the sector, with a market capitalization of over $733 billion.
Bitcoin price drifts away from $38,000 on the daily timeframe | Source: BTCUSDT chart on TradingView
Featured image from iStock, chart from TradingView