Bitcoin ASIC mining rigs (machines optimized for Bitcoin mining only) are selling at an unprecedented price since 2020-2021. This is seen as a sign of a deepening crypto bear market.
Latest data from Hashrate Index The price of efficient ASIC equipment that produces at least one terahash per 38 Joule, which reached $119.25 on May 7, 2021, fell by 86.82 percent to $15.71 as of December 25, 2022.
Bitmain’s Antminer S19 and MicroBTC’s Whatsminer M30s are also among the hardware in this category.
The same is true for mid-range mining rigs. The prices, which reached $ 96.24 in May of last year, have decreased to $ 10.23 today.
The price of the most inefficient machines, which require more than 68 Joules of energy per TH, fell by 91 percent from $52.85 to $4.72. This equipment was last sold at this price on November 5, 2020.
The decline in mining hardware prices is attributed to the fact that large Bitcoin mining companies are struggling to profit in the bear market. These companies either sold BTC or borrowed to continue their activities, while the most difficult ones went bankrupt.
Companies filing for bankruptcy include names such as Core Scientific, Marathon Digital, Riot Blockchain, Bitfarms and Argo Blockchain.
The decrease in hardware prices turned into an advantage for some buyers. Many Russian-based mining facilities such as BitRiver have taken advantage of this, along with the relatively low electricity prices in the country. Some of the new mining rigs can mine one Bitcoin, spending 0.07 kWh in energy-rich Russia.