Aug 9, 2026
A minority Bitcoin blockchain fork created by BIP-110 supporters split from the main network at block height 961,632 but stalled after producing only two blocks, with lead mining group Roughnecks announcing it has ceased operations. The main Bitcoin chain pulled ahead by over 18 blocks as the controversial anti-spam proposal failed to gain miner support.
Bitcoin miner MARA Holdings secured $600 million in loans from Coinbase Credit and Two Prime Lending on August 4, 2026, pledging 18,750 BTC (valued at approximately $1.2 billion) as collateral to finance expansion into artificial intelligence infrastructure and power generation. The move comes amid concerns after the company sold nearly all its mined Bitcoin and MARA stock dropped 10.9% following the announcement.
MARA Holdings swung to a $611.3 million net loss in Q2 2026 despite record production, driven by a 28% decline in Bitcoin's average price and markdown of holdings. CleanSpark also reported significant revenue drops, with MARA's revenue falling 27% year-over-year to $174.9 million and CleanSpark posting $138 million in quarterly revenue.
Bitcoin miners MARA Holdings and CleanSpark posted second-quarter revenue declines of 27% and 30.5% respectively as both companies continue pivoting toward AI infrastructure, with MARA awaiting its first commercial AI contract.
Bitcoin miners MARA Holdings and CleanSpark reported heavy Q2 losses totaling $851 million, with MARA's net loss at $611.3 million and CleanSpark's at $239.8 million, driven by falling Bitcoin prices and non-cash valuation losses.
Bitcoin's controversial BIP-110 proposal nears its activation deadline at block 961,632 (approximately August 8, 2026) with minimal miner support of around 2.4%, far below the 55% threshold, raising concerns about a potential network fork. Michael Saylor has called on backers to stand down, while supporters have prepared contingency plans including a proof-of-work hard fork.
Nasdaq-listed Bitcoin mining company PowerCompute consolidated three existing debt facilities totaling $18 million under a new Bitcoin-backed credit facility with Arch Lending, pledging 307 BTC as collateral and securing an initial interest rate near 2% APR.
Bitcoin miner TeraWulf reported Q2 2026 results showing high-performance computing revenue jumped 52% to $31.9 million, now comprising 71% of total revenue, while announcing a 20-year, $19 billion lease agreement with AI company Anthropic for 401 megawatts of data center capacity.
Fortitude Mining Holdings, the Zcash mining subsidiary of Digital Currency Group, completed the acquisition of a 12.5 megawatt digital infrastructure facility in Prosser, Nebraska for $6.25 million in cash, with a net outlay of approximately $4.7 million after credits.
Bitcoin mining difficulty has fallen to 126.23 trillion, down 14-19.9% from 2026's peak in the third-deepest ASIC-era decline, as miners redirect power capacity to AI operations amid plunging revenues. Meanwhile, three mining pools now control approximately 60% of the network hashrate, and SBI Crypto has shut down its Japanese mining pool.
Russia has extended its cryptocurrency mining restrictions to Moscow, the Moscow Region, and parts of Kursk Region, citing power supply concerns. The expansion reduces mining capacity in one of the world's major Bitcoin mining centers.
Russia's government will prohibit cryptocurrency mining in Moscow, Moscow Oblast, and parts of Kursk Oblast starting August 15, 2026, with the ban extending through December 31, 2032. The restrictions cite energy concerns and wartime power shortages as justification.
French company Crypto Blockchain Industries announced its annual results for the fiscal year ending March 31, 2026, revealing a strategic pivot to prioritize Bitcoin mining operations while depreciating assets from its CREATE activity. The company aims to achieve operational break-even and acquire AI-dedicated servers.
A Russian court transferred Igor Runets, founder of Russia's largest cryptocurrency mining operation BitRiver, from house arrest to a pretrial detention facility to face charges of large-scale fraud related to alleged failure to deliver crypto mining services.
Poolin Technology, once the world's largest Bitcoin mining pool with 18-20% of global hashrate in 2019, filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection in New Jersey on July 22, 2026, owing $163.7 million to 11,700 wallet users. The company and two U.S. affiliates are seeking court approval to sell Texas mining assets with opening bids totaling $52 million.
Bitcoin mining's annual electricity demand rose to approximately 190 terawatt-hours by December 2025, a 38% increase from 138 TWh in June 2024, with preliminary Cambridge research showing miners increasingly drawing power from low-carbon sources, particularly hydropower which has overtaken natural gas as a primary energy source.
Bitcoin mining pool OCEAN has announced the launch of Portal, a new end-to-end encrypted dashboard that allows miners to monitor and manage their operations while maintaining privacy and data sovereignty without revealing their identity.
Crypto asset manager CoinShares has unveiled a new UCITS platform targeting institutional investors across Europe, launching its first product—the CoinShares Bitcoin Mining UCITS ETF - on Deutsche Börse Xetra. The move provides pension funds, insurers, and private banks access to digital assets through Europe's tightly regulated fund framework.
AI company Anthropic has signed a 20-year lease agreement with TeraWulf to use a data center in Hawesville, Kentucky, in a deal expected to generate approximately $19 billion in revenue. The agreement marks TeraWulf's pivot from Bitcoin mining to AI infrastructure hosting.
A House committee hearing on six to seven GOP-backed cryptocurrency tax bills revealed sharp divisions between Republicans and Democrats over proposals to exempt staking and mining rewards from taxation and other digital asset tax reforms. Democrats questioned whether the legislation would unfairly favor crypto over traditional investments.
Britain's Financial Conduct Authority warned Premier League clubs against sponsorship deals with unauthorized crypto firms, citing legal liability and money laundering risks, while mining pool F2Pool separately issued a public warning denying partnerships with hashrate token projects.
Investment firm Bernstein has initiated coverage on Bitcoin miners TeraWulf and Cipher Digital with 'Outperform' ratings and price targets of $36 and $32 respectively, positioning them as 'power landlords' for AI infrastructure. The coverage comes as Bitcoin mining stocks have significantly outperformed BTC in 2026, with miners securing over $110 billion in AI-related deals over the past two years.
Bitcoin miner Riot Platforms generated $33 million in inaugural data center revenue in Q1 2026 while expanding its AMD partnership with doubled contracted capacity, signaling accelerated pivot to AI infrastructure hosting.
Bitcoin miner MARA Holdings announced acquisition of Ohio natural gas plant operator Long Ridge Energy for $1.5 billion, including a 505 MW gas plant and 1,600 acres offering over 1 GW power capacity for AI data center expansion.
Tether has proposed merging NYSE-listed bitcoin treasury company Twenty One Capital with Strike and Elektron Energy, with Strike CEO Jack Mallers and Elektron founder Raphael Zagury taking executive roles. Twenty One Capital shares rose on the news.
Stablecoin issuer Tether announced development of customizable, upgradable modular Bitcoin mining systems in partnership with Canaan and ACME Swisstech, expanding its infrastructure push beyond software into hardware manufacturing.
Bitcoin miner MARA Holdings announced the MARA Foundation to support Bitcoin network resilience, adoption, and address quantum computing risks. The foundation opened a $100,000 community grant vote for Bitcoin companies.
Bitcoin miner Core Scientific announced plans for a $3.3 billion speculative-grade debt offering to refinance short-term debt and scale AI data center infrastructure, with six facilities leased to CoreWeave expected to generate $10 billion in revenue.
Tether disclosed a nearly 2 million-share stake (8.2%) in Nasdaq-listed Antalpha, a Bitcoin mining finance platform, as the stablecoin issuer expands investments across crypto infrastructure. Tether also participated in an $8 million funding round for UAE tokenization firm Kaio.
Bitcoin mining company Riot Platforms sold 3,778 BTC worth approximately $250-290 million during Q1 2026, more than 2.5 times its production, as part of a strategic pivot toward AI infrastructure. The sales add to a broader trend of public Bitcoin treasury companies liquidating holdings.
Senators Bill Cassidy and Cynthia Lummis introduced legislation aimed at reshoring Bitcoin mining equipment manufacturing and codifying the Strategic Bitcoin Reserve, addressing the fact that 97% of mining machines are made by Chinese companies despite the US hosting 38% of global hashrate.
Bitcoin miner MARA Holdings sold 15,133 BTC for approximately $1.1 billion between March 4-26 to buy back $1 billion of zero-coupon convertible notes at a 9% discount, reducing its convertible debt by roughly 30%.
A federal judge in California has certified a class of Nvidia investors alleging the chipmaker failed to properly disclose billions of dollars in crypto-related GPU revenue. The certification allows the securities case to advance toward potential trial.