Bitcoin mining firm Hive Blockchain will increase its hash rate by more than 1200 PH/s through these ASICs. Canaan Creative has been unable to meet demand for equipment, leading cryptocurrency mining companies to seek other manufacturers.

In recent days, Canadian Bitcoin mining company Hive Blockchain announced that it will buy 6,400 ASICs. They have an agreement with Chinese mining equipment manufacturer Canaan Creative, which is also publicly traded. The shortage in the number of these devices leads to turning to manufacturers other than Bitmain.

According to the announcement of the Canadian company, their computing power could reach 1200 PH/s. Besides, they said that the first 500 mining machines would arrive in May while the rest would do it monthly.

The major companies that focus on Bitcoin mining services are competing more forcefully. People recently learned that there would be no more Bitmain shipment until August 2021. This has forced mining companies to look for other companies that make this type of equipment.

Bitcoin Mining Firm Turns to Canaan

Given the fierce competition for as much hash rate as possible, Bitcoin mining companies see Canaan as a secure provider. Other firms, including Core Scientific and Riot Blockchain, have targeted large ASIC manufacturers like Bitmain and MicroBT.

However, Bitmain has not been able to meet the demand for equipment; this is why these firms are turning to alternative manufacturers. The trend towards a shortage of mining equipment has become increasingly latent. That could mean a great opportunity for Bitcoin miner manufacturers like Canaan and Ebang, among others.

Hive Blockchain had set itself the goal of reaching a computing power of 1,000 PH/s. Through the acquisition of the Canaan miners, they hope to surpass that cap. The equipment of this manufacturer is not as efficient as the S19 and M30S series. However, they are among the most renowned machines and have received a lot of acceptance.

The current rally in the price of Bitcoin has led to “resurrecting” old equipment. This has been particularly the case in countries where energy costs are low. These devices include Avalon 841, which has broad commercialization in Iran and Venezuela.

Hive Blockchain Doubles Its Purchase

This Canadian Bitcoin mining firm has doubled its purchase of Bitcoin mining equipment. Throughout 2020, the company purchased around 3,500 cryptocurrency mining devices, and that number has risen to 6,400 machines.

One of Hive Blockchain’s plans is to rank among the largest Bitcoin producers in North America. For that reason, they recently joined rival Riot Blockchain. In that way, they have become the second company of their kind to reach a valuation of USD 1 billion.

The cryptocurrency market has grown exponentially in the last year worldwide. This has led those who do this activity to find the most efficient way to extract coins. The low cost of energy in some countries has favored the rebirth of lower-performance equipment that contributes to the increase in hash rate.

By Alexander Salazar

The number of nodes on the Bitcoin network increased, setting a new all-time high. The new Bitcoin Core update could have increased interest in installing this software.

In recent days, the number of nodes on the Bitcoin network increased to set a new all-time high. Low user confidence in custodial solutions may have led to that happening.

According to data from Bitnodes.io, the number of active nodes on the network reached 11,674. However, another analytics platform, Coin.dance, indicates that they reached 11,613 nodes.

In both cases, the number of nodes exceeds the all-time high of 11,250 from last year. The release of Bitcoin Core version 0.21.0 could have contributed to new interest in installing this software.

What Has Led the Number of Bitcoin Nodes to Soar?

Another factor has also led Bitcoin nodes to increase to a record number. It is the increase in the distrust of users in custody solutions. As these are increasingly demanding, people have sought to create their nodes.

The appearance of the new Bitcoin Core update on January 14^th has increased interest in installing this software. The new update has more than 619 active nodes; this represents 5.5% of all the nodes running on the network.

The previous version (0.20.1) is still the most popular since there are around 5,000 nodes in it. However, it is necessary to keep in mind that the most recent version is only a week old. It is the fourth most widely used one, which may be an indication of how big it could go.

A prominent quality of the latest version is that it is friendly to the implementation of Taproot’s consensus rules. The latter is an update to the Bitcoin network to improve many of its features. This could explain the significant increase in the number of Bitcoin nodes.

Compatibility with Taproot and Bitcoin Core Update

Taproot’s consensus rules can be compatible with version 0.21.0 without having to activate them on the mainnet. This makes it very attractive to the new Bitcoin nodes that are emerging.

Taproot is an update that will increase the security levels of transactions. It allows suppressing the visibility of “spending conditions unnecessarily exposed in previous implementations.”

Another relevant factor is the fact that some properties of the update open the door to the massification of Bitcoin. In other words, there are no longer any distinguishing features of the transactions. This can allow the pioneering cryptocurrency to become a more fungible asset.

The Hidden Tor Network Is a Priority

Since the number of Bitcoin nodes did not grow lightly, they could be largely aimed at the hidden Tor network. This is still the most dominant one since 25% of all active nodes on the Bitcoin network are on it.

For that reason, version 3 of Tor allows transactions to access many security options. For example, it is possible to add a privacy layer by hiding the IP address of the nodes.

By Alexander Salazar

During Trump’s administration, the price of bitcoin reached a peak of 3,660%in comparison with the dollar. Biden receives a depreciated official currency.

This Wednesday, January 20, Donald Trump left his charge as President of the United States in the hands of Biden and left to the new administration a dollar with the worst registered depreciation, a sum that surpasses the 3,600% in comparison with bitcoin.

When Trump received the presidency on January 20, 2017, Bitcoin’s price was lingering down the $ 1,000 mark, according to CoinMarketCap data. And today, the price is reaching the unbelievable points of $ 34,500 and with high hopes to cross that border.

The same year of the arrival of the now outgoing president, bitcoin went through the largest bull run since its creation, The cryptoccurrency’s price positioned near $20,000, with an appreciation of more than 2,000%. Then it suffered a sudden drop to $ 3,000 in March 2020, when the pandemic attacked the global economy.

There are two points to consider; they are the arrival of new institutional investors as well as the crisis that COVID-19 has unleashed in the entire globe. The inflation led to overprinting of fiat money and this consequently led BTC to break its all-time high and exceed $ 40,000 at the beginning of the year.

Dollar Printing and Bitcoin Monetary Policy are Consequences of the Crisis

The main measure to face the crisis during the year 2020 was the printing of more dollars. This happened in other countries. The purpose of this decision was to create a supportive environment in the market to help citizens and companies deal with all the adversities that confinement brought.

This printing of money last year was so huge that it created a consequent impact on the economy. More than 20% of all dollars in circulation are pieces of news. Those dollars have been in circulation since January.

Biden, on the other hand, seems to direct his action to a similar path.  He considered in a tweet that stimulus checks would be a wonderful option.

Meanwhile, some opinions reflect a very negative point of view about the dollar’s current situation. Analysts and other financial institutions see the dollar in a very doubtful and dangerous path. Others sustain blander and positive theories. Those opinions point out to a future based on bitcoin.

People and organizations that sustain the fact that bitcoin might result in a better alternative than fiat currencies also point out that many changes need to occur for something like this to happen. Firstly, for bitcoin to establish itself as a stable currency that can compete with the dollar, it needs to upgrade its policies to align its interests with those of the governments.

Bitcoin is not an ordinary currency; it is going to take time for citizens to get used to it since fiat money has reigned for so many years in the world.

 By: Jenson Nuñez