A growing part of the bitcoin industry is currently going through difficult times. According to a brutal observation published by JPMorgan on June 18, 2026, nearly one in five miners would no longer be profitable in the current conditions of the crypto market. While the sector was hoping for a lull, the mathematical reality of the network is proving ruthless for the least efficient players.
In brief
- JPMorgan estimates that around 20% of bitcoin miners are currently unprofitable.
- The production cost is estimated at $78,000 while BTC is moving around $62,500.
- Mining difficulty has dropped by 10% twice since the start of the year.
When mining bitcoin costs more than it makes money
Led by analyst Nikolaos Panigirtzoglou, the JPMorgan report is clear: between 15 and 20% of bitcoin miners around the world are currently operating at a loss. The main reason? A violent discrepancy between operational costs and the market price.
The gap between the price of BTC (around $62,900 at the time of writing this article) and the actual cost of production (estimated at $78,000) has in fact persisted for more than five months. For many crypto experts, this is no longer a passing anomaly. It would rather be the new economic reality for the industry bitcoin mining.
That's not all! According to the note published by JPMorgan, hashprices also stagnate between $28 and $30 per PH/s/day. This is a reference indicator for measuring the profitability of the BTC mining. For operators operating with aging equipment or high electrical costs, this level is simply insufficient.
32,000 BTC sold in a single quarter
Most analysts agree: perhaps the most worrying signal comes from the sales figures. THE publicly traded mining companies have in fact liquidated more than 32,000 BTC in the first quarter of 2026, just to cover their operational expenses. This volume exceeds the entire bitcoin sales of these same players over the entire year 2025.
Operators who held on to their coins as a long-term bet now find themselves selling urgently. Which simply means that the financial pressure is real.
There bitcoin mining difficulty also fell by 10% in June, for the second time this year. This means that machines are being disconnected and players are leaving the market.
The Bitcoin ecosystem is more fragile than it seems
JPMorgan notes another important technical detail: the beta between the bitcoin price and the mining difficulty reached 0.62 over the last six months. Concretely, each 1% drop in BTC leads to a 0.62% contraction in mining difficulty. This level of sensitivity is higher than historical averages. Since the last halving, the bitcoin mining reacts more violently to price fluctuations.
According to CoinShares, machines consuming electricity above $0.06/kWh are now loss-making. On the other hand, recent and efficient infrastructures are resisting. Others absorb losses or shut down.
In any case, JPMorgan's alert highlights the fragility of part of the Bitcoin ecosystem. It remains to be seen whether this phase of consolidation will mark a simple adjustment or the start of a new transformation of the sector.
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