The complexity of the Bitcoin network is determined by the total computing power, which correlates with the complexity of confirming transactions and mining BTC. According to blockchain.com data, the difficulty of the network decreased between May and July 2021 for various reasons, including a complete ban on mining cryptocurrencies from China.
The Bitcoin (BTC) network has recorded a new all-time high mining difficulty of 26.643 trillion with an average hash rate of 190.71 exahash per second (EH/s), indicating strong community support despite the ongoing bear market.
However, as miners displaced from other countries resumed operations, the difficulty of the network has recovered dramatically since August 2021. As a result, on January 22, the BTC network locked in ATH of 26.643 trillion.
According to BTC.com, the network will continue to strengthen, hitting another ATH over the next 12 days – with a network difficulty of 26.70 trillion.
Over the past four days, F2Pool has contributed the most to hash rate with 88 blocks of BTC, followed by Poolin with 76 blocks. As of yesterday, the average transaction fee is approximately $1.58, which historically peaked at $62.78 in April 2021.
Related: Bitcoin could outperform stocks in 2022 amid Fed tightening – Bloomberg analyst
Despite federal pressure to tighten monetary policy on cryptocurrencies, Bloomberg commodities strategist Mike McGlone suggests BTC has a chance to come out on top as investors recognize its value as a digital reserve asset.
As reported by Cointelegraph, McGlone believes that Bitcoin is in a unique position to outperform it in an environment where stimulus cuts are generally considered negative for risky assets:
“Cryptocurrency ranks first among risky and speculative instruments. If risky assets decline, it helps the Fed fight inflation. By becoming a global reserve asset, Bitcoin could be the main beneficiary in this scenario.”
