Bitcoin Miners Tapped into Treasuries as Power Costs Bites

Public Bitcoin miners are facing a perfect storm of rising power costs and dwindling profitability, forcing them to tap into their treasuries and sell some of their coins. The shrinking treasury sizes reflect a shift in strategy for many miners, who are now treating their Bitcoin holdings as a source of liquidity rather than a long-term investment.

According to data from CryptoSlate, public miners collectively held 115,335 BTC as of February 20th, worth approximately $7.4 billion at the recent price. However, this number has been decreasing steadily over the past month, with a decline of 4.44% in February alone.

The decline is not an accident, but rather a strategic decision by miners to manage their liquidity and fund other investments. Riot Platforms, for example, sold 1,818 BTC in December 2025 for $161.6 million in net proceeds, while Bitdeer liquidated its entire treasury, selling 189.8 BTC it mined plus dumping 943.1 BTC from reserves to fund a pivot into AI infrastructure.

The pattern suggests that miner treasuries are shifting from strategic reserves to working capital, and the timing matters. The market-implied hash price for the next six months sits around $28.73 per petahash per day, a level that makes older mining fleets uneconomic and forces operators to choose between selling Bitcoin, diluting equity, or raising expensive debt.