Bitcoin miner reserves fall to their lowest level in 14 years

Miners have held the least amount of Bitcoin on their balance sheets since February 2010, but the dollar value of their reserves is hovering around an all-time high.

According to Lucas Otomuro, head of research at IntoTheBlock, miners are expected to hold less Bitcoin over time as the halving puts pressure on their margins, making them more vulnerable to selling their reserves.

In Bitcoin's proof-of-work consensus mechanism, miners are rewarded with new bitcoins in exchange for validating transactions and securing the network. Miner reserves refer to unsold Bitcoin held by miners.

About every four years, the network's mining support is split in half.

The last halving, which occurred on April 20, 2024, reduced mining rewards from 6.25 BTC to 3.125 BTC.

“However, historically, this has been at a relatively slow rate, so it has not been a significant selling pressure,” Otomuro told Cointelegraph.

Despite the pay cuts, miner reserves measured in US dollars were hovering around an all-time high of around $135 billion. This means that even though Bitcoin producers hold fewer Bitcoins, the dollar value of Bitcoins is higher.

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