Post-Halving Bitcoin: Transaction Fees Plummet, Miner Revenue Uncertainties Persist

Bitcoin (BTC) commenced the week with stability, trading above $65,800, amidst a substantial decline in transaction fees posterior to the recent halving. This fee reduction stands in sharp contrast to the immediate aftermath of the halving, when medium-priority transactions peaked at over $146, and high-priority transactions reached $170.

Bitcoin's Post-Halving Landscape: Transaction Fees Plummet, Miner Revenue Uncertainties Linger

Bitcoin (BTC) has embarked on the new week with relative stability, hovering above the $65,800 mark. This composure comes amidst a notable decline in transaction fees following the recent halving event.

Transaction Fees Collapse, Relief for Users

In the wake of the halving, transaction fees witnessed a significant surge, reaching over $146 for medium-priority transactions and a staggering $170 for high-priority ones. However, data from Mempool.Space paints a different picture today, indicating a sharp drop in fees. Medium-priority transactions now incur a cost of $8.48, while high-priority transactions stand at $9.32. This represents a substantial reduction compared to the immediate aftermath of the halving.

Hashprice Index Tumbles, Miners Face Revenue Challenges

The hashprice index, a metric developed by Luxor to quantify miner earnings based on hashrate, has also taken a dive. It has plummeted from $182.98 per hash/day to $81, falling below pre-halving levels.

Runes Protocol Fails to Offset Revenue Loss for Miners

Anticipating the halving's potential impact on miner revenue, Casey Rodarmor introduced the Runes protocol, designed to create fungible tokens on Bitcoin. The protocol aimed to stimulate on-chain activity and offset the expected revenue loss.

However, the floor prices for the runestone NFT collection have suffered a setback, dropping nearly 50% in the last 24 hours, currently hovering around 0.037 BTC, according to Magic Eden. Conversely, other ordinal collections such as Bitcoin Pullets and NodeMonkes have witnessed gains of 11% and 8%, respectively, per CoinGecko data.

While these ordinal collections generate sizable transaction fees, they appear to fall short of the lucrative revenue source that many had hoped the Runes protocol would provide for miners.

Miners Stockpile Bitcoin Amidst Uncertainties

Crypto miners have amassed near-record amounts of Bitcoin in anticipation of a potential price surge that could counterbalance the halving's impact on new supply and halved rewards for transaction verification.

Industry Under Scrutiny, Proposed Tax Raises Concerns

The Bitcoin mining industry has garnered attention in recent times. President Joe Biden's proposal to impose a 30% tax on crypto mining power has drawn criticism for its potential detrimental effects on the industry and investor wealth.

As Bitcoin continues to navigate the post-halving landscape, the decline in transaction fees offers relief to users while miner revenue uncertainties remain a concern. The fate of ordinal collections and the broader mining industry will undoubtedly shape the future trajectory of the cryptocurrency.