- Bitcoin mining difficulty dipped slightly, but rising costs and hashrates are squeezing smaller miners hard
- Public miners are boosting production and hoarding Bitcoin as a long-term strategy
Bitcoin’s [BTC] mining difficulty dipped slightly to 126.4 trillion, after notching an all-time high of 126.9T on the 31st of May.
While the drop seems minor, it reflects growing economic pressure on miners as rising hashrates, reduced rewards, and soaring costs push many to the brink.
Yet, public mining giants are rewriting the rules of the game by ramping up production and stacking BTC for the long haul.
The cost of Bitcoin mining in 2025
Despite Bitcoin’s price hovering above $105K, profitability is increasingly elusive for many miners. The April 2024 halving reduced the block rewards to 3.125 BTC, slashing revenue overnight.
Source: CryptoQuant
Meanwhile, energy costs and infrastructure demands continue to climb, raising the operational breakeven point.
The Bitcoin network’s hashrate recently topped 1 zetahash per second, intensifying competition and making it harder for smaller players to stay viable.
Difficulty remains near peak levels, acting as a constant barrier to entry… and survival.
Public miners defy the odds
While smaller miners face growing pressure, public firms like Marathon Digital and CleanSpark are expanding aggressively.
In May, Marathon mined 950 BTC—a 35% increase from April—despite market volatility and rising network difficulty. CleanSpark also gained ground, producing 694 BTC, up 9% month over month.
Both companies have significantly scaled operations, with CleanSpark’s hashrate reaching 45.6 EH/s. Their size and strategic execution are helping them thrive, even as profit margins tighten across the mining sector.
Bitcoin treasury shift
A new trend is taking shape: public miners are hoarding.
Source: Bitcoin Treasuries
MARA now holds over 49,000 BTC and confirmed it sold none in May. CleanSpark has joined the ranks, amassing 12,502 BTC in total holdings.
This shows growing conviction in BTC’s long-term value and a broader corporate strategy to align with Bitcoin’s monetary ethos.
