In January 2025, Riot Platforms (RIOT) achieved significant milestones by mining 527 Bitcoin (BTC), marking the highest monthly production since December 2023. This figure reflects a 2% increase from the previous month, according to Farside data.
In stark contrast, the broader bitcoin mining sector reported disappointing production figures, with many major mining firms experiencing month-over-month declines. For instance, Marathon Holdings (MARA) mined 750 BTC in January, which represents a 13% decrease from December. Cleanspark (CLSK) also faced a decline, with a 6% reduction in production, yielding 626 BTC mined. Other notable mining firms reported negative trends as well:
- IREN (IREN): 2% decline
- Core Scientific (CORZ): 13% decline
- Cipher Mining (CIFR): 7% decline
- Bitfarms (BITF): 5% decline
- Hut 8 (HUT): 31% decline
The widespread drops in bitcoin production can be attributed primarily to the increasing network difficulty, which has become a core concern among industry leaders. “In January, our production saw a 12% month-over-month decline in blocks won, largely due to fluctuations in network difficulty and intermittent curtailment,” stated Fred Thiel, MARA’s chairman and CEO. Meanwhile, Jason Les, CEO of Riot, noted, “Riot mined 527 Bitcoin in January, marking the second consecutive month of increased production despite rising network difficulty.”
Bitcoin’s mining difficulty adjusts every 2,016 blocks to maintain an average block time of 10 minutes, and the upcoming difficulty adjustment set for February 9 is expected to reach an all-time high, surpassing the previous record of 108.11 trillion (T).
Mining Stocks Performance Year-to-Date
Bitcoin has risen by 4% year-to-date, thus serving as a benchmark for mining stocks. Key performances among miners reveal:
- Cipher Mining (CIFR) stands out with a 27% increase
- IREN, RIOT, and CLSK have also posted double-digit gains
- Bitdeer Technologies (BTDR) has fallen by 25%
- Core Scientific (CORZ) and TerraWulf (WULF) are both down approximately 10%
Hive (HIVE), BTDR, and WULF have yet to disclose their January production figures, leaving a gap in the current analytics for the industry.
