The bear market continues to hit the bitcoin mining industry hard, with the prices of the latest generation of mining rigs tumbling to their 2020 lows.
Bitmain’s Antminer S19 and S19 Pro are catching bids around $20-23 per terahash (TH), according to one application-specific integrated circuit (ASIC) trading desk. For comparison, these models were priced around $40/TH in recent months, and as high as $119/TH last year, according to Luxor Mining’s Hashrate Index data.
The $20-23/TH range is something the industry hasn’t seen since around the time of the 2020 bitcoin bottom. In addition to Bitmain’s S19, S19j and S19 Pro units, MicroBTC’s Whatsminer M30s, M30s+ and M30s++ models, among others, are feeling the slump as well.
The bear market pricing is being compounded by the recent bankruptcy filing of the Celsius Mining alongside parent company Celsius Network. A source tells CoinDesk that Celsius Mining auctioned off thousands of its newly purchased mining rigs in June, with the first batch of 6,000 selling for $28/TH and a second group of 5,000 changing hands at $22/TH. According to Hashrate Index data, mining rigs that month were trading from $50-$60/TH.
One broker tells CoinDesk average prices for newer S19j Pro models are now in the $25/TH area.
Read more: As Bitcoin Price Slides, Older Mining Rigs Are Becoming Less Profitable
“With additional machines hitting the market, we expect prices to decrease $1-2/TH across new generation machines,” said Luxor COO Ethan Vera. “There are a number of mining companies that will need to liquidate portion of their fleets, providing additional pressure on ASIC prices.”
However, he added, the drop in rig prices might find some support near the current market rate. “We see a heavy wall of bids, in the $18-20/TH range, that will provide a resistance level to ASIC prices at current economics.”
Read more: Bear Market Could See Some Crypto Miners Turning to M&A for Survival
Celsius Mining has been active in the industry via investing and lending as well as helping host the miners to which it lends to. Last year Celsius Mining said it invested a total of $500 million for its bitcoin mining operations in North America and was reported to have about 22,000 ASIC miners, most of which are Bitmain’s newest generation of AntMiner S19 series.
Amid the rig price drop and continued bear market, Bitmain has begun offering a reward coupon program for some customers who meet certain criteria, according to a blog post by the manufacturer. “In the midst of crypto winter, Bitmain is launching a reward coupon program to share our gratitude toward your continuous support,” said the company.
The reward coupons allow for deductions of up to 30% of the total order amount and are available for mining rigs from July 2022 or later, the blog added.
Read more: Crypto Miner CleanSpark Continues to Take Advantage of Bear Market as it Scoops Over 1K Rigs
