Summary
A solo Bitcoin miner has won a $181,000 block reward after mining block 860749, a rare feat given the dominance of larger mining pools such as FoundryUSA and Antpool, which control over 50% of the hash rate. Advancements in solo mining technology, particularly small ASIC rigs, are facilitating this trend, though solo miners still face significant competition.

In a notable achievement, a solo Bitcoin miner has successfully mined block 860749, earning a reward of approximately $181,000. This milestone was reached amidst a highly competitive mining environment, where larger mining pools continue to dominate the market. Currently, mining pools such as FoundryUSA and Antpool account for over 50% of the Bitcoin network’s total hash rate. Historically, solo miners have found it challenging to secure block rewards due to limited computational resources; however, advancements in mining technology, such as the introduction of new solo mining rigs, are creating opportunities for individual miners. For instance, the BitAxe mining rig offers a potential computational power of 500 Giga Hashes per second (GH/s). While the probability for a solo miner to successfully extract a block remains low due to the current high network difficulty and the concentration of institutional miners with significant resources, this recent success suggests a slight shift in the landscape. As noted by Julio Moreno, the Head of Research at CryptoQuant, “it is not a rare occurrence that a solo miner finds a block, it is just a low probability event. However, this has been happening a little bit more frequently as there has been a growth in the production of small ASICs (mining equipment), which is specifically targeted to people that want to mine by their own from their own home.” Despite this achievement by the solo miner, it remains clear that the mining pool arena is significantly concentrated, with FoundryUSA and Antpool commanding 53% of the Bitcoin network hash rate. According to statistics from Hashrate Index, FoundryUSA currently operates at a hash rate of 202.8 exahashes per second (EH/s), while Antpool operates at 160.3 EH/s.

The Bitcoin mining ecosystem is largely dominated by pools, which are groups that combine computational power to increase the likelihood of mining blocks and receiving rewards. Each Bitcoin block usually produces a reward valued at 3.125 bitcoins, following recent halving events that further decreased the rewards. As the technology for solo mining improves, individual miners are beginning to engage more frequently in an arena previously dominated by large institutions with extensive computational resources. This shift could lead to new dynamics in the mining sector, encouraging smaller operators to attempt to secure block rewards in an otherwise concentrated market.

The recent success of a solo Bitcoin miner in securing a substantial block reward highlights a potential shift in the mining landscape. Although mining pools still control the majority of the network’s hash rate, the emergence of new mining technologies is presenting opportunities for individual miners. The prevailing high difficulty level, however, signifies that while individual achievements like this are noteworthy, they remain rare due to the dominant positions held by larger mining operations.

Original Source: www.coindesk.com

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