On February 19, 2026, a significant increase in Bitcoin mining difficulty was recorded — the metric rose by 14.73% to reach 144.40 T. This data was released by the analytical platform CloverPool. The average hash rate at this time stands at 961.53 EH/s, indicating a substantial recovery of the network’s computing power following recent upheavals.
This is reported by Business • Media
Record Increase in Difficulty After Winter Storm in the U.S.
The nearly 15% increase in mining difficulty marks the largest absolute jump following a period of widespread restrictions in the U.S. caused by a severe winter storm. During that time, some operators were forced to temporarily shut down their equipment to reduce the load on the power grid, resulting in a decrease in hash rate of approximately 200 EH/s in leading mining pools. Specifically, in Foundry USA, the largest pool by market share, the hash rate fell by about 60%.
“Journalists added that mining difficulty is not measured in ‘absolute’ units. It is a relative metric that reflects how much harder it is to find a new block compared to the easiest period in the network’s history. The parameter is automatically adjusted every 2016 blocks, which roughly corresponds to a two-week interval.”
During this period, the average block formation time exceeded 12 minutes, which was the reason for the decrease in difficulty. However, after the weather conditions stabilized, computing powers returned to operation, and mining difficulty sharply increased.
Recovery of Mining Powers and Market Impact
Managing Partner of Ten31, Marty Bent, noted that the increase in difficulty is directly related to the return of equipment after weather-related restrictions. He dismissed theories regarding a mass exit of miners due to the threat of quantum computers or widespread integration into the field of artificial intelligence.
It is worth mentioning that recently, one solo miner successfully mined a Bitcoin block with a probability of less than 0.5%, receiving a reward of approximately $215,000.
Bitcoin mining difficulty and hash rate. Source: CloverPool.