Bitcoin mining revenue reached a fresh yearly peak as the cryptocurrency’s value surged. The price rally coincided with growing optimism about the potential approval of a U.S. spot Bitcoin ETF by the SEC.
Data from Blockchain.com shows that on November 12, BTC mining revenue hit $44,174,930.492. Which surpassed the previous yearly high of $41,744,197.067 on May 8, 2023. To put this in perspective, it exceeded mining revenue during the Ordinals craze in May.
This spike in mining revenue occurred as Bitcoin’s price surged to over $37,000 on November 9, driven by mounting anticipation of the SEC approving a U.S. spot Bitcoin ETF.
The spike in mining revenue came as BTC’s price surged to more than $37,900 on November 9, fueled by mounting anticipation of the possible approval of a U.S. spot Bitcoin ETF by the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). As of writing, Bitcoin’s current price stands at just over $37,155, up almost 6% for the week.
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The Reason Behind Increasing Miner Earnings
According to Blockchain.com President Lane Kasselman, Bitcoin miners earn more when two key factors come into play. First, Bitcoin’s price, and second network activity. While network congestion drove earnings in May, the recent surge is primarily due to Bitcoin’s rising price.
“When the network is busier, it means more people are using it, and they pay higher fees for transactions. So, in May, even if Bitcoin’s price wasn’t exceptionally high, the network was congested, leading to a significant boost in miner earnings. However, the recent increase in their earnings is mostly due to the rising price of Bitcoin.”
The May congestion resulted from high demand for Ordinals, digital assets inscribed on the Bitcoin blockchain. Miner revenues peaked at $40 million per day, despite Bitcoin’s lower price at that time.
The SEC’s consideration of Bitcoin ETFs has fueled Bitcoin’s price surge, and the expiry of deadlines for rebuttal comments on pending ETF applications could lead to the simultaneous approval of 12 Bitcoin ETFs.
Reports suggest that Grayscale is in discussions with the SEC to convert its Grayscale Bitcoin Trust (GBTC) into a spot Bitcoin ETF, following a court order to review the SEC’s actions regarding the application.
While the SEC has previously rejected spot Bitcoin ETF applications, approval is seen as a significant milestone for institutional cryptocurrency acceptance, allowing investors exposure to the market without holding the assets themselves. JP Morgan analysts predict approval as soon as January 2024.
