The $BTC network just hit a major milestone, but it’s one that has miners feeling the heat. In the most recent adjustment on February 20, 2026, Bitcoin mining difficulty surged by 14.7%, reaching a staggering 144.4 trillion.
This represents the largest absolute increase in the network's history, effectively erasing the "relief" miners felt during the brief decline earlier this month.
What’s Driving the Surge?
The primary catalyst is the massive rebound in hashrate. Following a series of severe winter storms in the United States that forced large-scale operations in Texas and elsewhere to curtail power, the machines are back online. As the total computing power jumped from 884 EH/s back over 1,000 EH/s (1 Zettahash), the network responded by making it significantly harder to find the next block.
The Profitability Crisis
While a higher difficulty means a more secure network, it creates a "perfect storm" for miner margins:
Higher Costs: It now takes more electricity and better hardware to earn the same amount of $BTC .
Lower Price: With Bitcoin trading around $69,500—down from its October highs of $126,000—the "hashprice" (revenue per unit of computing power) has plummeted to multi-year lows.
The Breakeven Point: Analysts estimate the average production cost is now hovering near $77,000, meaning many miners are currently operating at a loss.
The Bottom Line
This difficulty spike is a classic "shakeout" event. We are seeing a transition where only the most efficient, low-cost operators can survive. For investors, historically, these periods of "miner capitulation" often signal a market bottom or a stabilization phase before the next leg up.
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