CoinShares: Mining profit margins are at historic lows, transformation to AI has become a necessity for mining companies

PANews March 26—According to Coinshares' latest Bitcoin mining report, Bitcoin mining profitability is at a historic low. In Q1 2026, the hash price dropped to around $28–30 per PH/s/day, marking a new post-halving low. In Q4 2025, the weighted average cash cost reached approximately $80,000 per coin, resulting in about 15–20% of mining machines worldwide operating at a loss. Transitioning to AI is no longer optional for mining companies. Publicly listed mining firms have cumulatively announced over $70 billion in AI/HPC contracts, and by the end of 2026, as much as 70% of their revenue may come from AI. Some mining companies have incurred massive debts to build out AI infrastructure, fundamentally changing the industry’s risk profile. There is a clear divergence in mining company valuations: those with HPC contracts have an EV/NTM revenue multiple of 12.3x, while pure mining companies are at 5.9x. The sector has already split into “infrastructure companies” and “mining companies,” with drastically different prospects for each.