Bitcoin's hashrate surges 100% to 1 ZH/s, price drops 10%

Bitcoin's hashrate, a measure of the computational power used to secure the network, has reached an unprecedented milestone, surpassing 1 zettahash (1 ZH/s) for the first time. This achievement was recorded on Friday, marking a significant increase from the previous record of 975 exahashes per second (EH/s) set on Jan. 31. The hashrate, which first reached 1 EH/s in 2016, has now multiplied by a factor of 1,000, reflecting the substantial growth in the network's computational power over the years.

Despite the record-breaking hashrate, the price of bitcoin has not shown a corresponding increase. In fact, the price has fallen by an additional 10% since April 3, driven in part by external factors such as President Trump’s tariffs. As of the latest data, the price of bitcoin is hovering around $77,000. This disconnect between the hashrate and the price highlights the complex dynamics at play in the cryptocurrency market, where various factors can influence the price independently of the network's computational power.

The hashrate milestone is particularly noteworthy given the natural variability in block time, which can affect short-term measurements. Analyzing the hashrate over a 24-hour period can be misleading due to this variability. More accurate insights are typically derived from longer-term averages, such as the 7-day moving average, which currently stands at 879 EH/s. Nonetheless, the achievement of 1 ZH/s is a historic moment for the bitcoin network, underscoring its continued growth and resilience.

In addition to the hashrate milestone, the difficulty adjustment for bitcoin mining has also reached an all-time high. As of Sunday, the difficulty adjustment increased by nearly 7%, pushing it to 121.5 trillion (T). This marks the largest upward adjustment since July 2024 and the 14th positive adjustment out of the last 17. The difficulty adjustment mechanism ensures that blocks continue to be mined approximately every 10 minutes, maintaining the network's consistency and security.

However, while the hashrate and difficulty adjustment have reached new heights, miner revenue per exahash, also known as hashprice, has fallen to an all-time low of $42.40. This decline is attributed to a combination of low transaction fees, rising network difficulty, and a relatively low bitcoin price. The hashprice is a metric that estimates daily income relative to hash power, and its decrease indicates that miners are facing increased challenges in maintaining profitability.