Riot Platforms Bucks Trend of Weak Bitcoin Production in January

Riot Platforms (RIOT) mined 527 Bitcoin (BTC) in January, marking its highest monthly production since December 2023 and reflecting a 2% increase from the previous month, according to Farside data.

However, the broader bitcoin mining sector reported underwhelming production figures, with most major mining firms experiencing month-over-month declines.

MARA Holdings (MARA) mined 750 BTC in January, representing a 13% decline from December. Similarly, Cleanspark (CLSK) saw a 6% decrease, mining 626 BTC. Other mining firms also reported negative month-over-month production figures:

• IREN (IREN): 2% decline
• Core Scientific (CORZ): 13% decline
• Cipher Mining (CIFR): 7% decline
• Bitfarms (BITF): 5% decline
• Hut 8 (HUT): 31% decline

The widespread decline in bitcoin production can be attributed to the increasing network difficulty, which both Riot and MARA’s CEOs cited as a key challenge.

“In January, our production saw a 12% month-over-month decline in blocks won, largely due to fluctuations in network difficulty and intermittent curtailment,” said Fred Thiel, MARA’s chairman and CEO.

“Riot mined 527 Bitcoin in January, marking the second consecutive month of increased production despite rising network difficulty,” said Jason Les, CEO of Riot.

Bitcoin’s mining difficulty adjusts every 2,016 blocks to maintain an average block time of 10 minutes. The next difficulty adjustment, set for Feb. 9, is projected to hit an all-time high, surpassing the previous record of 108.11 trillion (T).

Bitcoin has risen 4% YTD, serving as a benchmark for mining stocks. Among miners:

• Cipher Mining (CIFR) is the standout performer, up 27%
• IREN, RIOT, and CLSK have all posted double-digit gains
• Bitdeer Technologies (BTDR) is down 25%
• Core Scientific (CORZ) and TerraWulf (WULF) are both down approximately 10%.

Hive (HIVE), BTDR and WULF have yet to report January production figures.