Bitcoin Miners Contend With Fifth Network Difficulty Increase of 2023

Bitcoin miners are contending with the fifth network difficulty increase since February 24, 2023, following a 1.72% rise on April 20 at block height 786,240. The network’s difficulty now stands at 48.71 trillion, marking a 22.62% increase over the last 55 days since block height 778,176. Bitcoin’s Difficulty Has Risen More Than 22% Since Block Height 778,176 In less than two months, Bitcoin’s difficulty surged by over 22% and reached an all-time high on Thursday, April 20. The current difficulty of 48.71 trillion implies an exceptionally high average hash rate necessary for mining a new block. Specifically, a miner would