Bitcoin miner Riot Platforms sold 3,778 Bitcoin in the first quarter, part of a wider wave of sales by crypto firms amid difficult market conditions. Riot sold the coins at an average price of $76,626, netting about $289.5 million, according to its Q1 operational update. Bitcoin was trading near $66,867 as of Friday.
Riot produced 1,473 Bitcoin during the quarter and held 15,680 coins at the end of Q1. Blockchain intelligence platform Arkham flagged a separate 500-Bitcoin outflow on Thursday from a wallet it attributed to Riot.
Other miners and crypto firms have also liquidated holdings recently. In the last week, MARA Holdings, Genius Group and Nakamoto Holdings disclosed combined sales of 15,501 Bitcoin, with the majority from MARA.
Kadan Stadelmann, blockchain developer and investor, said rising energy costs—exacerbated by the Middle East conflict and higher oil prices—are forcing miners to sell to cover operating expenses. He noted that less efficient miners are switching off rigs amid mounting costs, which reduces hashrate and mining difficulty and can make mining more profitable for operators who remain online.
Bitcoin mining difficulty fell on March 20 from around 145 trillion to about 133 trillion, while network hashrate dropped from roughly 1,160 exahash to about 990 exahash since the start of the month, according to CoinWarz data.
Stadelmann added that a decline in energy prices or a rise in Bitcoin’s price could bring some less efficient miners back online. Efficient miners might also expand operations or acquire competitors if conditions improve.
