Bitcoin price extended its decline, trading below $72,000 for the first time since October. The network's hash rate tumbled to 920 EH/s (0.92 ZH), slipping under the 1 ZH threshold. Two forces are driving the collapse: AI data centers outbidding miners for power contracts and the Middle East conflict pushing oil prices higher, which directly raises miners' electricity costs.
According to CoinDesk, the cost to mine one Bitcoin now exceeds $87,000, far above the token's spot price — meaning miners lose roughly $15,000 per coin mined. Needham & Company expects most public miners to sell virtually all their BTC holdings as they redirect capital expenditure toward AI workloads. Cango Inc., for instance, sold 4,451 BTC in February alone to reduce debt and finance its pivot to AI infrastructure, rebranding as EcoHash. CEO Paul Yu stated the firm is “advancing our pivot to become an AI infrastructure provider.”
Mining Difficulty Set for Steepest Drop in Five Years
The mining sector's liquidation wave is destabilizing the network. CoinDesk research suggests the next difficulty adjustment will see a decline of 8% to 10%, marking one of the steepest cuts in half a decade. Analysts warn that sustained miner selling could overwhelm even institutional ETF buyers. Although Bitcoin ETFs collectively hold $165 billion in assets under management (Bernstein), structural capital migration — miners exiting to fund AI infrastructure — is pressuring the entire large-cap crypto space.
Remittix Raises Over $29.7 Million While Miners Bleed
Capital is rotating into payment infrastructure that operates independently of mining economics. Remittix announced it has raised more than $29.7 million, with its token priced at $0.13. The project targets the $19 trillion cross-border remittance market. Its wallet is already live on the Apple App Store, and the full PayFi platform is set to launch soon, enabling crypto-to-fiat transfers directly into bank accounts across more than 30 countries. The system generates real transaction volume regardless of Bitcoin's price action.
Remittix has passed CertiK security verification and is labeled the “number one pre-launch token.” The team claims the platform's remittance fees create a continuous revenue stream, decoupled from miner capitulation. As miners unload BTC to fund AI builds, Remittix offers a different narrative — one tied to real-world payment volume.