- Bitcoin mining difficulty drops 11% amid market downturn.
- Significant hashrate reduction due to adverse conditions.
- Potential extended period of unprofitability for miners.
Bitcoin mining difficulty decreased by 11.16% to 125.86 trillion on February 2026, following a hashrate reduction attributed to market downturns and U.S. weather disruptions.
This decline marks the largest since China’s 2021 restrictions, indicating potential challenges for miners amid fluctuating Bitcoin revenues.
The latest adjustment in Bitcoin mining difficulty has brought a substantial decrease of 11.16%, marking the largest drop since China’s 2021 mining ban. This change occurred at block 935,429, reflecting a significant decline in the mining hashrate.
Key industry players have reacted as Foundry USA, the leading mining pool, experienced a nearly 60% drop in hashrate during Winter Storm Fern, partially recovering afterward. Luxor Technology reported that hashprice reached an all-time low of $33.31 per PH/s per day.
The immediate results of the decreased mining difficulty are significant for the cryptocurrency industry. The reduced hashrate has led to a decline in miner revenue, which has fallen to a yearly low of $28 million daily. This situation creates a strained environment for miners, who face unprofitability if the hashprice remains below $40 per PH/s per day.
“The $40/PH/s/day level is widely seen as the threshold at which miners must decide whether to keep machines running.” – Ben Harper, Director of Derivatives, Luxor Technology
The financial implications of this adjustment could extend to miners who may consider shutting down operations if profitability does not improve. Historical precedent suggests that such significant drops in mining difficulty can make short-term rewards easier to attain for certain miners but can also signal prolonged challenges. The mining difficulty is expected to adjust upward again, potentially by more than 13%, to bring it to 138.82 trillion.
