This weekly project roundup highlights key developments in major blockchain projects, including Bitcoin, Ethereum, and emerging ecosystems.
Bitcoin Network Updates
Mining Difficulty Drops to 39.16T
Bitcoin's mining difficulty decreased by 0.483% to 39.16T, with average network hashrate stabilizing at 290.14 EH/s.
Russia Proposes Tax Incentives for Siberian Miners
The Russian government plans to offer tax benefits to Bitcoin miners in Siberia, coinciding with the central bank's openness to cryptocurrency use in international trade.
👉 Explore Bitcoin mining opportunities
Centralization Concerns: Top 5 Pools Dominate
- Foundry USA leads with 33.26% global hashrate (95.89 EH/s).
- Antpool (15.97%) and Binance Pool (15.54%) follow closely.
- Combined, these pools control 88.4% of Bitcoin's total computational power.
Key Data:
- Current mining cost per BTC: ~$24,119 (vs. market price of $21,901).
- Miners earned $574K from Ordinals NFT transactions.
Ordinals Protocol Surpasses 1M NFTs
Bitcoin's NFT standard has minted over 100,000 inscriptions, generating record-high block space utilization (2.52MB avg.).
Ethereum Ecosystem Highlights
Layer-2 Growth & Upgrades
- zkSync exceeds 200K ETH deposited (~$300M) across 540K+ addresses.
- Rocket Pool caps ETH staking at 22% of network total to promote decentralization.
NFT Market Rebounds
- Weekly NFT sales rose 18.43%, with Ethereum accounting for 85.76% ($238.5M).
- Reddit Avatars surpassed 10M minted on Polygon.
ETH Supply Deflation Accelerates
- Post-Merge circulation decreased by 21,000 ETH (~$31M).
- 290M ETH burned ($4.35B total value destroyed).
👉 Discover Ethereum staking options
Emerging Projects & Partnerships
DeFi Innovations
- Aave V3 now supports Rocket Pool’s rETH as collateral.
- SushiSwap launches decentralized incubator Sushi Studios.
Infrastructure Milestones
- Filecoin confirms smart contracts launch in March 2023.
- Polygon zkEVM mainnet beta goes live March 27.
FAQ Section
Q: How does Bitcoin’s mining centralization impact security?
A: While efficiency improves, over 50% control by few pools raises risks of coordinated attacks. Diversifying mining participation is critical.
Q: What’s driving Ethereum’s NFT resurgence?
A: Lower gas fees, institutional interest (e.g., Reddit’s NFL collab), and improved Layer-2 scalability.
Q: When can users withdraw Celsius Network assets?
A: Eligible custodial account holders began receiving notifications on February 15, with gas fees deducted from balances.
Disclaimer: This content is for informational purposes only and does not constitute financial advice. Always conduct independent research.