Key Takeaways
How much Bitcoin does MARA hold right now?
Marathon Digital holds 52,850 BTC worth about $6.12B after its latest 400 BTC purchase through FalconX.
Will the reduced miner sell-off boost BTC recovery?
Yes, if the macro and broader market sentiment remains positive.
A few institutions like Marathon Digital Holdings [MARA] took advantage of the weekend drop to accumulate discounted Bitcoin [BTC]. The cryptocurrency dropped from $115K to below $105K before rebounding.
Amid the recovery, the Bitcoin miner scooped 400 BTC, worth $46.31 million, on the 13th of October, according to Lookonchain.
The miner now holds 52,850 BTC, worth $6.13 billion, per data aggregated by Bitcoin Treasuries.
Source: Bitcoin Treasuries
From the 27K BTC holdings as of last November, the firm is on track to double its stash. It’s the second-largest public firm holding BTC after Michael Saylor’s Strategy.
But the growth picked up pace after MARA launched a hybrid approach of buying and mining BTC.
In September alone, MARA reported that it mined 705 BTC amid intense market competition. Over the period, the network difficulty also hit a record high, further underscoring the challenging mining ecosystem.
Mining growth meets rising network difficulty
In September, BTC Miner Revenue Per Day hit a monthly high of $60.5 million per YCharts. In the past two weeks, the revenue has dropped to $50 million on average.
With the shrinking revenue to cover the cost of operations, it appeared some miners opted to sell their stash to pay bills.
According to CryptoQuant, the Miners’ Position Index (MPI), which tracks miner outflows or selling pressure, spiked to a monthly high of 2 on the 11th of October, just after the market crash.
Source: CryptoQuant
However, the metric has dropped below 0, as of writing, indicating that selling pressure from miners had tapered. This could allow BTC enough room for price recovery if the broader market sentiment and macro drop remain positive.
Meanwhile, since late September, the total hashrate or mining power has dropped from over 1 billion TH/s to 996 million TH/s. This meant some players unplugged from the network as the price declined, hence reducing overall competition.
BTC price steadies near $115K
As of press time, BTC traded at $115K, up about 7% from the recent low, amid Donald Trump’s U-turn and softer stance on China.
Source: BTC/USDT, TradingView
However, the tariff front could determine this week’s market direction. In the meantime, MARA’s stock closed last Friday’s session lower at $18.65 after a 7.6% decline.
