A recent report by Cantor Fitzgerald suggests that the upcoming Bitcoin halving event will present significant challenges for the eleven largest publicly traded Bitcoin miners. However, Bitdeer, a Singapore-based mining company, is expected to maintain its profitability despite the challenges. Cantor analysts predict that Bitdeer will emerge as a potential winner due to its high cost-efficiency. Bitdeer's cost per coin is estimated to be the lowest compared to other miners at $17,744, assuming an average Bitcoin price of $40,000 and a stable hashrate. This finding highlights Bitdeer's competitive edge and potential to lead the industry post-halving.

The Bitcoin mining network has experienced meteoric growth, with an increase in hashrate of 104% in 2023. This rapid expansion raises concerns regarding its sustainability, both from an environmental standpoint and in terms of the mining network’s profitability. In this document, we aim to address both of these important issues. Our final results of the average cost of production per Bitcoin, post halving for each miner are listed below, highlighting the average cost of production is US$37,856.

On January 8th, cryptocurrency mining company Argo Blockchain announced on X platform that it has completed a placement of 38 million shares, raising a total of £8 million (equivalent to $10 million USD), which will be used for operational funds, debt repayment, and other company purposes.

The Shanghai Songjiang Court recently heard a dispute over an information network purchase and sale contract. It is reported that the plaintiff spent more than 100,000 yuan to purchase a batch of "mining" equipment, but found that some parts were actually second-hand goods, so he sued for a refund and compensation of three times the amount. After trial, the Songjiang Court believed that the premise of applying the Consumer Rights Protection Law is to purchase and use goods for daily consumption needs. In this case, Mr. Li did not purchase and use the goods for daily consumption needs, and whether he has already made a profit is not the basis for judging whether he is an ordinary consumer. Therefore, the dispute in this case does not apply to the Consumer Rights Protection Law, and the claim for "refund and compensation of three times the amount" is unfounded, and the court does not support it.

Citing Glassnode data, Bitcoin miners have been continuously selling BTC since mid-October. As of December 28th, the balance of Bitcoin in miner wallets decreased by 700 BTC in 24 hours. Compared with the short-term high point on October 22nd, the balance of miners has decreased by 12,700 BTC.

Over the Christmas weekend, Indonesian authorities conducted a raid on ten suspected bitcoin mining sites that were allegedly using stolen electricity from the national grid. Although Indonesia is not known for being a hub for mining, it is a fast-growing crypto adopter. Electricity theft is considered a criminal offense in Indonesia, with penalties of up to five years in prison or a fine of up to twice the value of the unpaid electricity. At the raided sites in Medan, North Sumatra, authorities found 1,314 bitcoin rigs and detained 26 individuals. The suspects allegedly stole electricity by tapping into state-owned utility poles, resulting in losses of around $100,000 to the state.

The most pressing issue today in improving quality of life for people around the planet is access to energy. Bitcoin mining can finance the build out of infrastructure to do that.

According to BTC.com data, the Bitcoin mining difficulty adjustment occurred at block height 822,528 (14:04:24 on December 23, 2023), with a 6.98% increase to 72.01 T, reaching a new historical high. Currently, the average network computing power is 531.98 EH/s.

Marathon Digital Holdings, Inc. has reached a final acquisition agreement with Generate Capital and a subsidiary of PBC to acquire two currently operational Bitcoin mining facilities with a total capacity of 390 megawatts for a total of $178.6 million, which will be paid in cash from Marathon's balance sheet.

Core Scientific, a Bitcoin mining company, has postponed its final joint hearing for bankruptcy and exit from December 22nd to January 10th of next year. Currently, an additional global settlement plan has been reached, and the deadline for equity issuance has been extended to December 28th.