What cut BTC hashrate this week?

TLDR

Bitcoins hashrate fell roughly 810% this week, primarily due to shutdowns of mining farms in Chinas Xinjiang, with claims of about 400,000 rigs going offline reported by a former Canaan executive.

1. Estimated loss was about 100 exahashes per second, the steepest drop since the 2024 halving per coverage.
2. Near term, slower blocks and revenue pressure can prompt some miner selling until difficulty adjusts as noted.
3. Hashrate is an estimate; network difficulty should rebalance, making the impact temporary in most cases analysis.

Deep Dive

1. Xinjiang Shutdowns

The core driver was a reported enforcement wave in Chinas Xinjiang region, forcing mining farms offline. Former Canaan co-chair Jianping Kong estimated around 400,000 machines were shut down, equating to roughly 100 EH/s lostabout 810% of network power, the sharpest contraction since the 2024 halving report. A public update highlighted the magnitude, characterizing the decline as the steepest since the halving post.

2. Near-Term Effects

When a large regional cluster goes offline suddenly, block intervals lengthen until the next difficulty adjustment, and miner revenues dip, sometimes pushing operators to sell BTC to cover costs or relocate equipment context. Daily miner revenue has also trended lower recently, compounding pressure during a hashrate dip snapshot. Hashrate itself is inferred from block timings, so figures are approximate rather than exact point measurements note.

3. Temporary Adjustment

These disruptions have historically been temporary. Difficulty adjusts downward, incentivizing remaining and returning capacity, while hardware migrates to jurisdictions with stable policy and power analysis. Coverage noted the drop as the sharpest post-halving decline, but framed the effect as short?term and consistent with prior enforcement cycles in China overview.

Conclusion

The hashrate cut this week was driven chiefly by mining farm shutdowns in Chinas Xinjiang, removing an estimated 810% of network power. Near?term effects include slower blocks and miner revenue stress, but difficulty should rebalance and mitigate the impact. The key is tracking policy enforcement and miner relocation, while recognizing hashrate readings are estimates that normalize as the network adapts.