Bitcoin’s hashrate has almost fully recovered just six months after China’s crypto ban sent miners fleeing to more hospitable shores.
Fast facts
- Despite the recent price crash, the total Bitcoin hashrate stood at 180.5 million terahashes per second, almost approaching its all-time high of 180.67 million TH/s back in May, according to data from Blockchain.com.
- The hashrate took a nose-dive earlier this year following China’s crackdown on the sector, plunging by over 50% to 84.79 million TH/s on July 3, the lowest since September 2019, though it has been steadily recovering since then.
- Meanwhile, Bitcoin mining difficulty is set to increase by about 7% in the next adjustment that will likely occur this weekend, according to data from BTC.com.
- China has been clamping down on the crypto mining industry since earlier this year. Notably, on Sept. 24, the National Development and Reform Commission — the country’s top economic planner — jointly issued a notice with 10 other authorities to implement a stepped-up ban on crypto mining. In the joint notice, the authorities clearly stated they intend to categorize crypto mining as an outdated industry, in a move to prohibit investments in the sector.
- China’s latest attempts to crack down on the sector include detecting miners via IP addresses. For example, Qihoo 360, a Chinese internet company best known for its antivirus software programs, has built a system that could help the Chinese government track crypto mining activities. The company said last week that it detected 109,000 active mining IP addresses on a daily average in November, mainly in the Guangdong, Jiangsu, Zhejiang and Shandong provinces.