New York, Wednesday, August 7, 2024 – Bitcoin miner Riot Platforms reported a second-quarter loss following the Bitcoin halving event, which cut the block reward in half and significantly impacted the company’s profitability.
The halving, a pre-programmed event that occurs approximately every four years, reduces the reward miners receive for adding new transactions to the blockchain, thereby increasing the cost of mining operations.
In a regulatory filing on Thursday, August 1, 2024, Riot Platforms disclosed a net loss of $27.5 million for Q2, a stark contrast to the $4.6 million profit reported in the same period last year. The company attributed this decline to a combination of the Bitcoin halving, increased energy costs, and a drop in Bitcoin prices during the quarter.
Despite the financial loss, Riot Platforms continued to expand its mining operations, increasing its hash rate—the computing power used to mine Bitcoin—to 14.2 EH/s (exahashes per second) by the end of June.
This expansion reflects the company’s commitment to maintaining its position as one of the largest Bitcoin miners globally, even in the face of challenging market conditions.
Riot Platforms also reported a reduction in Bitcoin production, mining 1,775 BTC in Q2 2024 compared to 2,028 BTC in the previous quarter.
The company cited the increased network difficulty—a measure of how hard it is to mine a Bitcoin block—as a key factor in this decline.
Riot Platforms says it plans to invest in more energy-efficient mining equipment and explore strategic partnerships to offset the challenges posed by the Bitcoin halving. It said that the company was optimistic about the long-term potential of Bitcoin and blockchain technology.
