Bitcoin’s network hashrate has hit a new all-time high, driven by the cryptocurrency’s price approaching its record levels. According to data from mining firm Luxor, the seven-day simple moving average (SMA) of hashrate reached 742.42 EH/s on October 30, 2024, surpassing the previous record of 736 EH/s set on October 25.
Miner Revenue Boosted by Price Rally
The rising hashrate has also improved miner economics. Luxor’s metrics show that the hashprice—the estimated value of 1 PH/s of SHA256 hashpower—stood at approximately $48.05 on Wednesday, up over 7% from $44.93 on October 27. Each PH/s equals 1,000 TH/s or 0.001 EH/s. This revenue gain coincides with Bitcoin’s price strength: BTC traded around $72,000 at 11:30 a.m. ET on Oct. 30, after hitting $73,600 the previous afternoon.
Faster Block Times and Impending Difficulty Adjustment
With the network’s computational power surging, average block intervals have shortened to about 9 minutes and 15 seconds, below the target 10 minutes. This acceleration signals an imminent difficulty adjustment. Current estimates suggest a 7.94% increase in mining difficulty at the next recalculation, which would help restore the normal block pace. If the hashrate continues its upward trajectory, the network could soon approach 800 EH/s.
The record hashrate reflects miners’ confidence in Bitcoin’s future price and the continued deployment of next-generation, more efficient mining rigs. However, the impending difficulty increase will squeeze margins for older hardware, potentially accelerating the shift toward more efficient operations. Overall, the higher hashrate strengthens the network’s security and decentralization.