Bitcoin's mining difficulty keeps increasing in anticipation of the momentous halving event, which will slash miner rewards by 50%.
Prior to the upcoming halving, Bitcoin's mining difficulty has undergone another adjustment, reaching a fresh peak of 86.4 trillion. This adjustment, recorded on April 10, represents a 3.4% rise from the previous difficulty level of 83 trillion set on March 28, as per data from BTC.com.
The most recent adjustment in Bitcoin mining difficulty is anticipated to be the final one before the halving event.
Per BTC.com, the subsequent adjustment in Bitcoin mining difficulty is scheduled to take place in approximately 13 days, around April 24. Concurrently, based on data from CoinMarketCap, the Bitcoin halving is predicted to transpire in eight days, or on April 19.
Bitcoin mining difficulty gauges the complexity and time required to mine a new block or solve mathematical puzzles within Bitcoin's proof-of-work (PoW) consensus mechanism.
The adjustment in BTC mining difficulty occurs every 2,016 blocks, or roughly every two weeks, as part of Bitcoin's self-regulating system to maintain a targeted block time of 10 minutes.
This difficulty level directly correlates with the Bitcoin blockchain's hash rate, which measures miners' computational power in generating new BTC.
Corresponding with the rise in Bitcoin mining difficulty, the BTC hash rate has notably surged recently, increasing from approximately 619 exahashes per second (EH/s) on March 28 to 696 EH/s on April 10, as reported by BTC.com.
While the difficulty achieved an all-time high on April 10, the Bitcoin hash rate had previously reached an all-time high.
Certain analysts anticipate a potential decline in the BTC hash rate following the upcoming Bitcoin halving in 2024.
Galaxy's mining analysts suggest that up to 20% of Bitcoin's current hash rate may cease operation post-halving, as numerous miners could deactivate their mining rigs due to reduced efficiency after the halving event.
These analysts note that by the conclusion of 2023, more than 70% of the Bitcoin hash rate was attributed to eight specific ASIC miner models.
April 2024, Cryptoniteuae