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Report: $4B in Bitcoin Mining Loans Are in Distress — JPMorgan Analyst Says Price Pressure Stems From Miner Sales

Cryptocurrency-related lending has become a black smudge for the industry these days and according to a recent report, bitcoin’s low price has put billions in mining loans under stress. The report, which quotes the co-founder of mining company Luxor Technologies, Ethan Vera, says that roughly $4 billion in loans backed by crypto mining rigs are extremely close to running a risk of default.

Analyst Says Miners ‘Are Nervous About Their Loan Books’

The price of bitcoin (BTC) is 21% lower than it was two weeks ago and the price drop has hurt BTC miners a great deal. According to a report from Bloomberg, analysts say that a number of loans backed by mining machines are underwater.

Luxor’s Ethan Vera estimates that around $4 billion in loans backed by mining rigs are under stress. “They are nervous about their loan books, especially those with high collateral ratios,” Vera explained to Bloomberg’s David Pan.

Using current BTC exchange rates, only 14 SHA256-based mining rigs are profiting with an electrical cost of around $0.05 per kilowatt-hour (kWh), according to asicminervalue.com statistics. The top mining machines manufactured by Bitmain and Microbt, gather between $2 to around $4.50 per day with an electrical cost of around $0.05 per kWh.

The report notes that miners are selling BTC to bolster operational costs and it highlighted that in May, Core Scientific Inc. sold over 2,000 BTC for operational expenses.

“Bitcoin miners, broadly speaking, are feeling pain,” Luka Jankovic, head of lending at Galaxy Digital detailed in the report. “A lot of operations have become net IRR negative at these levels. Machine values have plummeted and are still in price discovery mode, which is compounded by volatile energy prices and limited supply for rack space,” Jankovic added.

JPMorgan Analyst Says Bitcoin Miners Continue to Put Pressure on the Price

Traditionally, during bear markets, bitcoin miners are forced to sell off holdings which puts even more pressure on the price. Another report, quoting JPMorgan analyst Nikolaos Panigirtzoglou explained that bitcoin miners that need to sell will keep weight on the current downward pressure affecting BTC markets in recent times.

Panigirtzoglou and his group of strategists at JPMorgan believe that privately-held miners may have sold a large share of block subsidies to help operational costs. A number of reports had shown that miners have been selling large quantities of BTC since February 2022.

“Bitcoin miners have been net distributors since the recent sell-off,” the team of onchain analysts at Glassnode detailed on June 2. “Miners balances have recently declined at a peak rate of 5k to 8k BTC per month ($150M to $240M at $30k BTC).”

During the past few weeks, a handful of crypto lenders have also been under severe stress and some are dealing with liquidations. The crypto lender Celsius has been under the crypto community’s scrutiny for alleged liquidations and rumors about restructuring and insolvency.

Loans tied to the BTC mining industry may force miners to sell even more BTC if prices go lower than today’s current exchange rates.

What do you think about the pressure bitcoin miners are feeling from the lower bitcoin price? Let us know what you think about this subject in the comments section below.

Jamie Redman

Jamie Redman is the News Lead at Bitcoin.com News and a financial tech journalist living in Florida. Redman has been an active member of the cryptocurrency community since 2011. He has a passion for Bitcoin, open-source code, and decentralized applications. Since September 2015, Redman has written more than 5,000 articles for Bitcoin.com News about the disruptive protocols emerging today.

Image Credits: Shutterstock, Pixabay, Wiki Commons

Disclaimer: This article is for informational purposes only. It is not a direct offer or solicitation of an offer to buy or sell, or a recommendation or endorsement of any products, services, or companies. Bitcoin.com does not provide investment, tax, legal, or accounting advice. Neither the company nor the author is responsible, directly or indirectly, for any damage or loss caused or alleged to be caused by or in connection with the use of or reliance on any content, goods or services mentioned in this article.

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Vote postponed to renominate SEC commissioner Caroline Crenshaw

Senate Banking Committee chair Sherrod Brown called it a “disgusting smear campaign against Caroline Crenshaw” The vote was postponed minutes before it was due to begin by Brown No date has been set for Crenshaw’s renomination A US Senate vote to renominate Democrat Commissioner Caroline Crenshaw to the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) has been…


US SEC Commissioner Jaime Lizárraga to resign in January

  • Senate Banking Committee chair Sherrod Brown called it a “disgusting smear campaign against Caroline Crenshaw”
  • The vote was postponed minutes before it was due to begin by Brown
  • No date has been set for Crenshaw’s renomination

A US Senate vote to renominate Democrat Commissioner Caroline Crenshaw to the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) has been postponed.

The vote was originally scheduled on December 11; however, it was postponed minutes before it was due to begin, reports Bloomberg. Sherrod Brown, the Senate Banking Committee chair, delayed the vote. When Brown requested the vote occur later that day, Republican senators blocked his request.

Brown later released a statement saying that corporate special interests are running a “disgusting smear campaign against Caroline Crenshaw.”

No date has been set for her renomination.

Earlier this week, crypto and blockchain advocacy groups voiced their opposition to Crenshaw’s renomination.

In a letter to Brown and Senate Banking Committee Ranking Member Tim Scott, the Blockchain Association and the DeFi Education Fund argued that Crenshaw’s actions have undermined Congress’s mandate to establish clear regulatory policies for the crypto industry.

In their letter, they mention Crenshaw’s “continued opposition to the approval of a spot Bitcoin ETP.”

Following the news of Crenshaw’s reappointment, Brian Armstrong, CEO of Coinbase, took to X to say: “She tried to block the Bitcoin ETFs, and was worse than Gensler on some issues (which I didn’t think was possible).”

A Republican-majority SEC?

The delay to Crenshaw’s renomination opens up the possibility of a three-person Republican SEC once Donald Trump enters the White House in January. Crenshaw’s term at the SEC officially ended in June; however, if she’s renominated she would be the only Democratic SEC commissioner.

The SEC can make up to five commissioners, but no more than three can form the same political party. Current SEC chair Gary Gensler, a Democrat, is stepping down on January 20, and SEC Commissioner Jaime Lizárraga, also a Democrat, will step down on January 17.

Last week, Trump nominated pro-crypto Paul Atkins, a Republican, as chair of the SEC.

Including Gensler and Lizárraga, the three remaining SEC commissioners include Republicans Hester Peirce and Mark Uyeda.


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Australia fines Kraken operator $5 million for non-compliance

Kraken operator in Australia Bit Trade will pay a $5.1 million fine for non-compliance with regulatory requirements. The Australian Securities and Investment Commission accused the crypto platform of offering a credit facilty that did not comply with regulations. Kraken crypto exchange’s Australian operator firm has been slapped with a AU$8 million ($5.1 million) fine for…


Kraken shutting down its NFT marketplace just a year after its launch

  • Kraken operator in Australia Bit Trade will pay a $5.1 million fine for non-compliance with regulatory requirements.
  • The Australian Securities and Investment Commission accused the crypto platform of offering a credit facilty that did not comply with regulations.

Kraken crypto exchange’s Australian operator firm has been slapped with a AU$8 million ($5.1 million) fine for non-compliance with Australian regulations.

The Australian federal court fined Bit Trade following a lawsuit by the Australian Securities and Investment Commission. In its order, the court said that the Kraken crypto exchange operator must comply with the country’s crypto regulations.

The court ordered that the exchange ought to pay 8 million Australian dollars as a penalty for non-compliance with the local regulations. Notably, Kraken recently announced a licensed broker offering for clients in Australia.

Bit Trade failed to comply with regulations

In August this year, the court ruled in favour of the Australian Securities and Investment Commission. The regulator had filed a case accusing Bit Trade of issuing a credit facility without following the legal proceedings.

ASIC argued that Bit Trade did not make the target market determination, a requirement to protect investors. Between October 2021 and August 2023, ASIC stated that the firm offered a margin extension to 1,100 users which cost them a loss of over $5.2 million without following the legal requirements.

The market regulator’s demand was Bit Trade to pay a fine worth 20 million Australian dollars. On their argument, Bit Trade put their limit to a maximum of four million Australian dollars. The penalty follows these proceedings, and the Kraken operator in Australia has 60 days to comply with the order.

In addition, the firm would cover for all the commissions court proceedings costs.

Kraken has faced regulatory hurdles in the US too, with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC), suing the exchange earlier in November 2023.

SEC’s allegations include Kraken offering of unregistered activities and operating as an unregistered broker. In August 2024, a US court denied the exchange’s motion that sought to dismiss the SEC’s lawsuit.


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Saylor and Bukele Discuss How El Salvador Can Accelerate Global Bitcoin Adoption

Michael Saylor has met with Salvadoran President Bukele to discuss accelerating global bitcoin adoption as El Salvador strengthens its position, continuing to accumulate bitcoin despite IMF-driven policy adjustments. Michael Saylor Meets Nayib Bukele to Discuss Bitcoin Strategy Michael Saylor, executive chairman of Microstrategy (Nasdaq: MSTR), met with El Salvador’s President Nayib Bukele on Feb…
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