Bitcoin miners are shutting down operations due to record low revenues and rising energy costs, leading to significant financial losses.
A significant downturn in Bitcoin mining revenue has led many companies to suspend operations, as the cryptocurrency's price continues to decline while energy costs rise.
Bitcoin mining revenue per terahash has dropped to an unprecedented low of 3 cents, a dramatic fall from $3.5 in 2017, prompting major mining operations to unplug their equipment.
— Bloomberg (@business) February 5, 2026
The current mining difficulty level is at 141.66 T, with the hash rate averaging above 1 ZH/s according to Glassnode. Analysts from Newhedge anticipate a more than 13% reduction in mining difficulty in the upcoming recalculation, marking the most significant drop since China's crypto ban in 2021.
This downturn has adversely affected the stock prices of publicly traded mining firms. On February 5, shares of CleanSpark fell by 10%, Marathon Digital by 11%, TeraWulf by 8.5%, and Riot Blockchain by 4.8%.
Harry Sudok, CEO of CleanSpark, referred to the current situation as historic, attributing the crisis to two main factors: plummeting Bitcoin prices and adverse winter weather across the U.S. Severe storms in Texas and Tennessee at the end of January led to increased electricity costs, forcing miners to either shut down operations or participate in network balancing initiatives.
In an effort to adapt, companies like CleanSpark and TeraWulf are repurposing data centers for artificial intelligence applications, although Bitcoin mining still represents the bulk of their income.
Whale Activity
Marathon Digital recently transferred 1,317 BTC, valued at approximately $87.4 million, to external wallets and exchanges. The largest single transfer involved 653.7 BTC, worth $43.4 million, sent to an address associated with digital asset manager Two Prime.
IREN's Financial Struggles
Shares of the largest public miner, IREN, plummeted by 11.5% during regular trading and dropped another 13% in after-hours sessions. Their recent quarterly report revealed a revenue decrease to $184.7 million, falling short of the $224 million forecast, and a net loss of $155.4 million compared to a profit of $384.6 million in the previous quarter. This loss was largely attributed to a $219 million revaluation of financial instruments and a $31.8 million impairment of equipment due to the transition of data centers in British Columbia from mining to AI computing.
IREN co-founder Daniel Roberts mentioned a robust demand for data center services as the company reallocates resources towards more lucrative AI workloads.
CleanSpark's Transformation
CleanSpark's shares fell nearly 20% during trading and another 10% after hours. Their financial results showed revenue of $181.2 million, which was $13 million below expectations, and a net loss of $378.7 million, compared to a profit of $246.8 million a year earlier. As of December 31, 2025, their working capital stood at $1.3 billion. President Gary Vecciarelli announced a strategic pivot to diversify revenue streams, with an emphasis on AI infrastructure for future growth.
In November 2025, Bitfarms began a gradual exit from Bitcoin mining to focus on AI infrastructure, and in January 2026, Bit Digital outlined similar plans to cease mining in favor of AI investments and Ethereum initiatives.
