Riot Platforms stock rises on record January bitcoin mining
Riot Platforms (NASDAQ: RIOT ) announced that it mined 527 Bitcoin (BTC) in January, achieving its highest monthly production since December 2023 and marking a 2% increase from the previous month. This performance comes amidst a broader decline in production across the bitcoin mining sector, with many leading firms reporting month-over-month decreases in their production numbers.
The mining industry has faced challenges due to the increasing network difficulty, a factor that both Riot and MARA Holdings' CEOs acknowledged as a key obstacle. MARA Holdings (NASDAQ: MARA ) reported a 13% decline in its January production with 750 BTC mined, while Cleanspark (NASDAQ: CLSK ) saw a 6% decrease, mining 626 BTC. Other firms such as IREN (NASDAQ: IREN ), Core Scientific (NASDAQ: CORZ ), Cipher Mining (NASDAQ: CIFR ), Bitfarms (NASDAQ: BITF ), and Hut 8 (NASDAQ: HUT ) also experienced declines ranging from 2% to 31%.
Bitcoin’s mining difficulty is a measure that adjusts every 2,016 blocks with the aim of maintaining an average block time of 10 minutes. The next difficulty adjustment is expected on February 9, projected to reach a new all-time high, surpassing the previous peak of 108.11 trillion (T).
Year-to-date, bitcoin has seen a 4% increase, which generally impacts the performance of mining stocks. Cipher Mining (NASDAQ: CIFR ) has emerged as a notable performer, with its shares up 27%. RIOT, IREN, and CLSK have also enjoyed double-digit gains.
On the other hand, Bitdeer Technologies (NASDAQ: BTDR ) has seen a 25% drop, while Core Scientific (NASDAQ: CORZ ) and TerraWulf (NASDAQ: WULF ) have both declined by roughly 10%. Hive (NASDAQ: HIVE ), BTDR, and WULF have not yet released their January production figures.
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