The Bitcoin mining industry reached a historic milestone this week as the network officially entered the zetahash era, while several major mining companies announced significant developments and faced new regulatory scrutiny.
Network Milestone Achievement
Bitcoin’s network hashrate crossed the 1 ZH/s threshold for the first time in history, marking 15 years of network growth since its inception. The difficulty is set to rise another 4.1% to nearly 140T, officially locking in the zetahash epoch, though miner economics remain under pressure with hashprice sliding below $55/PH/s.
BitMine Immersion Technologies
BitMine Announces $10.8 Billion Crypto Treasury, Becomes Largest ETH Holder
BitMine Immersion (BMNR) made headlines with its September 15th announcement of crypto and cash holdings totaling $10.771 billion, establishing itself as the world’s largest Ethereum treasury. The company holds 2,151,676 ETH tokens valued at $4,632 each, along with 192 Bitcoin and $569 million in unencumbered cash, making it the second-largest global crypto treasury behind Strategy Inc. BitMine has become the 28th most traded stock in the US with $2 billion in daily trading volume.
Mining Capacity Expansion Leaders
Smaller Miners Drive Industry Growth
While larger mining operations largely paused expansion, smaller miners led capacity growth this month with Bitdeer surging 40%, HIVE increasing 28%, and Cipher Mining expanding 18%. Canaan also expanded its operations during this period, contributing to the overall network hashrate increase.
Stock Performance Surge
Mining Equities Break Out With Triple-Digit Gains
Mining stocks experienced a significant rally, with Cipher Mining jumping 124%, Terawulf rising 95%, and IREN climbing 86% to yearly or all-time highs. These gains far outpaced Bitcoin itself, which declined 3.2% during the same period, highlighting investor optimism in mining operations despite challenging economics.
Regulatory Scrutiny Intensifies
Bitmain and Cango Face National Security Investigation
Congressman Zachary Nunn sent a letter to Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent calling for a national security probe of Bitmain and Shanghai-based Cango’s U.S. operations. The investigation focuses on potential foreign investment concerns and reports of Bitmain’s possible acquisition of Cango through Class B shares, though Bitmain has denied these acquisition rumors. Additional concerns were raised about Bitmain exploring direct ownership of U.S. power generation assets.
Operational Performance Updates
Mixed Results Across Major Miners
Recent operational data shows varied performance among major miners, with HIVE Digital producing 247 BTC in August compared to 203 in July, while increasing its hashrate to 16.3 EH/s. Cipher Mining generated 241 BTC in August, up from 214 in July, as its operating hashrate reached 23 EH/s. Meanwhile, Canaan produced 98 BTC in August, nine more than the previous month, with expectations to push hashrate past 10 EH/s as delivered rigs come online.
Industry Outlook
The mining industry faces a complex landscape with the historic hashrate milestone creating both opportunities and challenges. While network security reaches new heights, declining transaction fees below 0.8% of rewards and compressed margins are forcing miners to optimize operations. The shift toward manufacturers like Bitdeer and Bitmain operating their own rigs reflects the changing competitive dynamics as the industry matures in the zetahash era.
