Bitcoin (BTC) miner revenue rose 48% in November as the cryptocurrency hit a new all-time high
Bitcoin miners enjoyed a lucrative November as the leading cryptocurrency reached a fresh record. On-chain data analysis from CoinDesk indicates miners generated an estimated $522 million in revenue last month, a 48% increase compared with October.
The revenue surge coincided with Bitcoin setting a new all-time high—peaking near $19,900—after gaining roughly 40% during the month. The revenue estimate assumes miners sell the BTC they mine.
CoinDesk measured miner revenue using terahash (TH), the unit that quantifies the speed of cryptocurrency mining hardware. According to the estimate, miner receipts hit a six-month high last month as miners earned more than half a billion dollars.
Data from Luxor Technologies, as reported by Hashrate Index, showed revenue per terahash reached $0.15 several times last month—the highest level since May 2020. Miner revenues have fluctuated this year amid cryptocurrency price volatility; however, year-to-date revenue per terahash per second (TH/s) has remained broadly steady. In January miners earned about $0.138 per TH/s, and current earnings sit near $0.135 per TH/s.
The BTC price surge also spurred increased network activity, but network fees fell as a share of total revenue—from 12.2% in October to 11% in November. Miners earned $54.9 million in network fees last month.
The drop in network fees’ share followed a two-year high in October. Overall, miners averaged about $3 per transaction toward the end of November, down from roughly $13 per transaction earlier in the month.
An increase in fees helps sustain the network
Although network fees declined as a share of November revenue, fees have been rising as a percentage of total miner income since April. The block reward halving contributed to upward pressure on network fees because fees help maintain blockchain security and provide incentives for miners.
With the block reward halving occurring roughly every four years, miners must still generate sufficient revenue to participate and keep the network secure. That dynamic explains why fees typically need to rise as block rewards fall.
The Bitcoin price rally may continue for several more weeks or months. Some analysts already expect BTC to surpass $20,000 in the coming weeks.