Bitcoin's mining difficulty has set a new record high in 2021's first adjustment, public data shows.
Bitcoin mining difficulty, which measures the competitiveness of bitcoin miners racing on the network, increased by 10.79% around 15:30 UTC on Saturday to 20.65 trillion – the first time above the 20 trillion level.
The latest record-high adjustment follows bitcoin's price surge in the previous mining difficulty cycle between December 28 and January 9, during which bitcoin surpassed $30,000 for the first time.
Meanwhile, bitcoin's mining revenue per terahash second of computing power also recently reached record highs not seen since September 2019, making it more lucrative for both new and old generation of mining equipment.
Indeed, the sky-high prices have not only led to a supply shortage of the newest generation of bitcoin miners but sparked a profitability renaissance for older models.