Even before China finally imposed a ban on crypto mining, Bitcoin (Bitcoin) Miners in North America have been improving their capabilities, striving to gain a larger share of the global hash rate distribution. From building larger data centers to acquiring hardware inventories, these institutions have been struggling to balance the dichotomy of computing power between the eastern and western hemispheres.
Bitcoin miners in North America also often have to deal with energy use issues. Some people are keen to work with oil and gas companies to become the last buyers of burning natural gas. In fact, US oil drillers and Bitcoin mining companies continue to cooperate on the use of natural gas, once again proving that Bitcoin’s thermodynamic capabilities will have a positive impact on the environment, despite criticisms of the proof of work. PoW) mining.
As North American entities seem to be about to establish greater influence in the global Bitcoin mining matrix, here are the four largest Bitcoin miners in the region.
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Riot Blockchain
According to estimates from multiple data sources, China still controls about 65% of the global Bitcoin hash rate by 2020. However, Riot Blockchain is expanding its business by acquiring large amounts of hardware from leading Bitcoin mining machine manufacturers such as Bitmain.
Only in August and December 2020, Riot Blockchain spends millions of dollars obtain Thousands of ant mining machines from BitmainIn fact, as Cointelegraph reported in April, the hashing power of Riot Blockchain 460% growth in 2020.
Riot Blockchain’s expanded inventory drive has continued until 2021, and the company Purchased more than 42,000 ant mining machines from Bitmain Earlier this year.The NASDAQ-listed company also announced a $650 million purchase A major data center located in Texas.
By acquiring the Whinstone data center in Texas, Riot Blockchain will own the largest single bitcoin mining facility in the United States. The American Bitcoin mining giant is even preparing to expand the site’s original capacity from 750 MW to more than 1,000 MW.
As its increase in production capacity coincides with China’s full-scale crackdown, it is not surprising that Riot Blockchain has achieved greater Bitcoin mining success, as evidenced by the data cited in its monthly production and operations updates. In April, the company reported that 187 bitcoins (worth $11.2 million at the time) were mined last month.
BTC production data in March 2021 mark This is an 80% increase from the total amount of Bitcoin mining in March 2020. The latest report in June, the company statement It mined 243 BTC, which is a 406% increase from June 2020 production.
The June report also showed that Riot Blockchain’s total bitcoin mining volume year-to-date is 1,167 BTC (currently valued at 36.5 million U.S. dollars). As of June 2020, the company has only mined 508 BTC, which means that this year’s output has increased by 130% year-on-year.
Riot Blockchain stated that as of the end of June, it held more than 2,200 bitcoins, all of which came from its mining business. The June report detailed the connection between its recent production success and the situation in China, “China’s Bitcoin mining outflow has led to a downward adjustment in difficulty and a decline in the global network hash rate. Therefore, Riot currently mines Bitcoin every day. More than at any time in the history of the company,” continue:
“Although it is widely expected that many Chinese miners will eventually relocate, the company estimates that it may take some time for the global Bitcoin mining hash rate to return to its previous high of 180 exahash/s (“EH/s”), last year early this year. Observed some time.”
marathon
Marathon can be said to be Riot Blockchain’s main competitor in the “North American Hash War”, and like its competitors, the cryptocurrency mining giant has been expanding its hardware inventory since 2020. In October, Marathon Patent Group, headquartered in Nevada Acquired 10,000 Antminer S-19 Pro From Bitmain.
The order size is so large that it is estimated that the company’s operating hash rate capability will be increased to 2.56 EH/s, slightly higher than Riot Blockchain’s expansion target of 2.3 EH/s. With Antminer orders arriving in Marathon in batches, the company now appears to be focused on achieving “carbon neutrality” and meeting regulatory requirements.
As early as March, the company first Announce plan Transfer all its current hashing power Enter the Bitcoin mining pool that meets regulatory requirements by early May. At the time, Marathon stated that Xinchi complies with the US Anti-Money Laundering (AML) agreement established by the Office of Foreign Control in the United States.
As Cointelegraph reported in May, the marathon is planned for 300 MW carbon neutral data center This will accommodate 73,000 Bitcoin miners. According to the announcement at the time, the deployment of the facility will enable the company’s carbon neutralization rate to reach about 70%, while increasing its hash rate to 10.37 EH/s.
according to data From BTC.com, achieving a hash rate capacity of 10.37 EH/s will make the Marathon ranked fifth in the current Bitcoin hash rate distribution log.
Although it is down more than 50% from the 2021 high of $56.56, as of this writing, the company’s share price has risen by 122.34% year-to-date. Since Bitcoin exchange-traded funds have not yet been approved in the United States, Bitcoin mining stocks are considered the next best move in terms of indirect exposure to BTC.
Marathon itself is a Bitcoin holder separate from its mining interests. At the beginning of the year, The company bought more than 4,800 BTC, It was worth about 150 million US dollars at the time. According to reports, the New York Digital Investment Group facilitated the transaction.
Cottage 8
The American company is not the only major participant in the North American Bitcoin Mining Theater, because the Canadian company Hut 8 is also an important name in the conversation.once The largest publicly traded Bitcoin miner by capacity As early as 2018, the Toronto-based company seemed to be recovering from previous setbacks.
In 2018, as the price of tokens fell from the peaks reached in December 2017 and January 2018, the cryptocurrency market suffered a severe bear market. In May 2019, Cabin 8 report Lost more than 136 million U.S. dollars For the previous year, this also Eventually led to a large number of layoffs.
After the crypto winter of 2018 and 2019, Hut 8 has upgraded its mining machine hardware on a large scale. Announce buy More than 11,000 MicroBT rigs worth approximately US$44 million. According to the capacity of MicroBT mining machines, once all the machines are installed in the company’s current 100 MW facility under construction, the hash rate capacity of Hut 8 is expected to reach 2.5 EH/s.
At a rate of 2.5 EH/s, Hut 8 predicts that its daily Bitcoin output will triple, from 6.5 to 7.5 BTC to 14 to 16 BTC. Such a daily BTC mining rate may also help maintain Hut 8’s position as the Bitcoin miner holding the most self-mining BTC in the world.
As early as January, the Canadian Bitcoin miner estimated its total Bitcoin holdings will reach 5,000 BTC By early 2022. The company also outlined plans to expand its hash rate to 6 EH/s by mid-2022.
related: North American crypto miners are ready to challenge China’s dominance
Hive Blockchain
The east-west transition of Bitcoin’s hash rate will eventually involve a radical change in the energy structure of BTC mining, with more emphasis on “green Bitcoin.” For this Canadian crypto miner, green energy is the main focus of its operations.
From Canada to Iceland, and even to Sweden, Hive Blockchain operates green energy-driven data centers for crypto mining.As early as May, it was reported that the company Forced to sell its facilities in Norway, Citing the issue of the country’s regulatory agency.
In early July, Hive acquired 3,000 MicroBT M30S miners Because of its plant in New Brunswick, Canada. According to reports, the increased computing power will be contributed to Foundry USA Pool, which has aggregated the computing power potential of other major North American miners (such as Hut 8, Blockcap, Bitfarms, etc.).
According to reports, Hive’s additional 3,000 mining equipment will increase the company’s hash potential by 0.264 EH/s, reaching a total hash rate of 0.83 EH/s.The company also recently joined the ranks of listed Bitcoin mining companies Ensure to be listed on NASDAQ in June.
At the same time, another US-based miner, Gryphon Digital Mining, may soon challenge the more well-known companies in the North American BTC mining industry.The company claims to use 100% renewable energy and recently Purchased 7,200 Antminer S19J Pro miners.
According to the hash power of the machine, Gryphon’s hash rate will increase by approximately 0.72 EH/s. According to reports, the new inventory will be installed in August, at which time the company will receive an ESG rating.
