Bitcoin Miners’ Reserves Drops to Lowest Level Since 2021
Bitcoin (BTC) miners are offloading part of their assets as they look towards the upcoming halving amid increased market activity and the rising Bitcoin price.
New data from on-chain analytics firm Glassnode shows a drop in the amount of assets held by Bitcoin miners this year. The amount of Bitcoin in miner wallets has plunged by 8,426 since the start of the year as the next halving nears.
This is the lowest level since July 2021. Currently, miners’ Bitcoin holdings stand at 1,812,482 BTC, with some miners looking to take profits following the recent Bitcoin price hike.
Miners’ offload since January totaled $530 million, with serious fees following into centralized exchanges and other custodians.
The Bitcoin and entire cryptocurrency ecosystem braces for the next halving in April, which will reduce block rewards by 50%. Miners receive 6.25 BTC per block with the slash bringing rewards down to 3.125 BTC.
The halving event takes place every four years, and although rewards are slashed, it is generally perceived as a bullish activity. This is based on statistically increasing asset prices following halving due to the reduced supply.
Several crypto commentators opine that miners seek to bank on the higher processing fees before the slash in rewards.
Following the 2022 bear market, miners posted huge losses leading to focus pivots to Artificial Intelligence (AI), computing, and the sale of Bitcoin reserves to stay afloat.
Some miners also sold equipment to competitors and merged due to plunging asset prices. Following the uptick recorded with BlackRock’s spot Bitcoin ETF application, the Bitcoin price gained momentum, giving miners a lifeline.
Miners began posting quarterly profits as more institutional funds flowed into the market,
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