Bitcoin’s hashrate (the network’s processing power and security dedicated) suffered one of its biggest drops in 2021 when China, which once contributed up to 70% of Bitcoin’s mining power, outlawed mining.
As miners migrated to other regions, the hashrate of Bitcoin steadily recovered, reaching its previously held highs in Q4. With Bitcoin now fully recovered from China’s crackdown, the network’s hashrate has set a new all-time high.
Bitcoin Hashrate Opens 2022 with a New High
On January 1st, 2022, the hashrate of the Bitcoin network set a new lifetime high, briefly peaking at above 224.32 exahash per second (EH/s), or 0.2 Zettahash. The hashrate proceeded to then stabilize at 209.39 EH/s.
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At the time of this writing, the hashrate of the Bitcoin network is hovering at around 194.8 EH/s. Since China’s crackdown, when the network’s hashrate dropped to 69.11 EH/s, the Bitcoin hashrate has grown by ​​202.98%.
With only 11 known mining pools today, Foundry USA contributes the largest amount of mining power, with 19.45% of the global hash power or 34.79 EH/s. Antpool ranks as the second-largest mining pool, contributing 16.91% of Bitcoin’s total hashrate at 30.25 EH/s.
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With an increase to mining power, analysts have predicted that the mining difficulty of the Bitcoin network could increase by 2.90% in the coming days, up to 24.98 trillion. The highest point ever recorded was 25 trillion.
On the Flipside
- Bitcoin’s energy consumption is still an ongoing debate, with Bitcoin said to have consumed more electricity than Argentina in 2021.
Why You Should Care
The recovery of Bitcoin’s hashrate proves that the network cannot be controlled by one region – as many believed was the case with China.Â
