The Bitcoin mining industry is becoming more and more competitive, and so-called Tier 2 operators are closing the gap to recognized leaders in terms of realized hashrate – this is a sign of a more level playing field after the 2024 halving.
According to The Miner Mag, companies such as Cipher Mining, Bitdeer and HIVE Digital have rapidly increased their realized hashrate after several years of infrastructure development, closing the gap with top players such as MARA Holdings, CleanSpark and Cango.
“Their growth shows how the middle tier of public miners – once lagging far behind – have rapidly increased production since the 2024 halving.” – wrote in the latest Miner Weekly newsletter.
While MARA, CleanSpark and Cango maintained their position as the top three public miners, rivals including IREN, Cipher, Bitdeer and HIVE Digital saw significant year-over-year increases in realized hashrate.
Overall, top public miners achieved 326 exahashes per second (EH/s) of realized hashrate in September, more than double the level recorded a year earlier. Together, they now account for almost one-third of the total hashrate of the Bitcoin network.
The hashrate represents the total computing power that miners contribute to securing the Bitcoin blockchain. However, the realized hashrate measures actual onchain efficiency, i.e. the speed at which valid blocks are mined.
For publicly traded miners, it also serves as a proximate indicator of operational efficiency and revenue potential, making it a key metric ahead of third-quarter earnings season.
Related: A lone Bitcoin miner earns 347,000. dollars, “pure sovereignty in action”
Bitcoin miners are stepping up hash wars
In the race for market share, Bitcoin mining companies are taking on record levels of debt as they expand into novel mining rigs, artificial intelligence infrastructure and other capital-intensive ventures.
Total sector debt has risen to $12.7 billion, up from $2.1 billion just 12 months ago, according to research by VanEck. The researchers noted that miners must continually invest in next-generation hardware to maintain their share of Bitcoin’s total hashrate and avoid falling behind the competition.
Some mining companies have turned to artificial intelligence and high-performance computing workloads to diversify revenue streams and offset falling margins following the 2024 Bitcoin (BTC) halving, which reduced block rewards to 3,125 BTC.
Related: HIVE Digital Accelerates AI Transformation with $100 Million HPC Expansion – Exclusive to Cointelegraph
