Bitcoin miners have seen a sharp decline in revenue from fees since the BRC-20 frenzy that drove network activity earlier in the month. According to data from Glassnode, miners were earning approximately $17.8 million daily from transaction fees when Bitcoin traded near its YTD highs. However, as of May 29th, 2023, the earnings had dropped to $1.7 million.
This 90.85% decrease in miner revenue from fees is still within historical levels as only 310 out of 4674 trading days have seen higher fees. In 2018, only two trading days saw transaction fees higher than the recent peak.
The BRC-20 craze caused network congestion, driving up fees to YTD highs. In response, Glassnode noted that “At the peak of the BRC-20 frenzy, Bitcoin miners were earning $17.8M in transaction fees, with only 2 trading days across the 2018 peak recording a larger fee revenue. Currently, miners are earning $1.7M in fee revenue, a -$16.1M decline from the recent peak. However, this remains significantly elevated when compared to historical precedence, with only 310/4674 (6.7%) trading days recording greater fees”.
