According to Cointelegraph: In a deviation from historical trends, the top five Bitcoin mining firms are retaining their Bitcoin (BTC) holdings, unaffected by the looming Bitcoin halving event. Collectively, these firms have slowed selling to a two-year low in Q1 2024, with approximately 2,000 BTC sold, as per the Bitwise report dated April 10.
This upcoming Bitcoin halving will involve a 50% issuance reduction, taking Bitcoin block rewards down from 6.25 BTC to 3.125 BTC per block mined. Usually, this event could influence a significant dip in BTC mining revenue, primarily due to the increasing Bitcoin hash rate, affecting profitability for miners.
Interestingly, Bitcoin miner revenue soared by 30% quarter-over-quarter, rising above $4.5 billion despite predictions of gloomy outcomes. The CEO of Acheron Trading, Laurent Benayoun, indicated that miner revenues might not necessarily fall in U.S. dollar terms post-halving due to rising network fees.
Historically, however, Bitcoin miner revenue has seen considerable declines in the aftermath of halvings; post-2020 and 2016 halvings saw revenues drop by 40% and 51% respectively within a month.
Marathon Digital tops the list of the big five, generating over 2,500 BTC in Q1 2024, albeit down from over 4,000 BTC in Q4 2023. The Bitcoin miners worldwide cumulatively hold over 700,000 BTC, representing 3.4% of the total Bitcoin supply.