Bitcoin block time hits 10-year lows after China’s mining ban

Bitcoin experienced its slowest block time in 10 years on June 27, demonstrating the clear consequences of the mining ban in China.

Blocking time Bitcoin 23 minutes on average this week

According to the research of cryptocurrency company Galaxy Digital, the average block time hit 23 minutes on June 27, much higher than the 10-minute target. The previous high was just under 18 minutes at the end of 2017.

Average daily time between blocks | Source: Alex Thorn

After each 2016 blocks, the network adjusts the level of difficulty in order to try to keep an average block time of 10 minutes. If it is well below the target time, the level of difficulty increases and vice versa.

Given the average block time of 23 minutes, the Bitcoin network will likely experience the largest difficulty adjustment in history.

China’s ban has been greatly reduced hashrate network

Since China asked to stop Bitcoin mining, the hashrate has dropped significantly. The total hashrate peaked at ~ 181 million in mid-May but fell below 100 million last week. The China ban appears to be one of the events that caused the Bitcoin hashrate to change the most.

For Bitcoin, however, hashrate migration from China to other jurisdictions is positive as it improves the decentralization of the network.

It is possible that the hash rate will continue to drop as miners try to leave China. A lower hashrate means that active miners mine more bitcoins and the level of difficulty decreases even further.

More miners are looking to North America because of the lower risk of sudden bans and better access to utilities.

Other countries like El Salvador are also focusing on Bitcoin mining with more sustainable energy sources such as geothermal energy from volcanoes. Mining can provide a new source of income for countries with significant access to renewable energy, while China is cracking down on it.

Minh Anh

According to Beincrypto

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