Iran’s Bitcoin hashrate falls 77% over the past quarter amid conflict

Iran’s Bitcoin mining hashrate has fallen sharply over the past quarter amid an ongoing conflict involving the United States and Israel, though the broader global hashrate has not declined in a way that threatens network continuity, according to a report from Hashrate Index.

Ian Philpot, marketing director at Luxor Technology, said Iran lost roughly 7 exahashes per second (EH/s) quarter-over-quarter. Hashrate Index data places Iran’s hashrate at about 2 EH/s, based on its heatmap.

Conflict impact contained to Iran

Philpot said the regional conflict clearly affected Iran, but that any potential ripple effects have not yet shown up in neighboring countries. He noted that the United Arab Emirates and Oman remained stable.

“The impact was contained to Iran; neighboring UAE and Oman remained stable. The global hashrate at ~1,000 EH/s persists because no single region has enough capacity to threaten network continuity. Regional disruptions redistribute hashrate rather than destroy it,” he said.

The Middle East conflict escalated in February after the US and Israel launched strikes against Iran, followed by retaliatory strikes. A two-week ceasefire deal between the US and Iran was reached on Tuesday.

Iran is estimated to have 427,000 active Bitcoin mining rigs.

Global hashrate declines alongside Bitcoin price slump

While Iran’s hashrate dropped, the report also points to weaker global conditions. The 30-day simple moving average for global network hashrate declined from 1,066 EH/s in Q1 to around 1,004 EH/s in Q2, a 5.8% quarter-over-quarter decline.

Philpot attributed the global decline to a slump in Bitcoin prices. Miners earn Bitcoin for each block they solve, but when prices fall, rewards may not cover operating costs.

Bitcoin has fallen more than 45% from its all-time high of $126,000 set in October, pushing hash prices to record lows. Philpot said mining profitability—rather than energy costs or regulatory policy—is the primary driver of recent geographic shifts in hashrate.

He added that at current levels, older-generation mining equipment is being forced offline. In his estimate, 252 EH/s of marginal capacity is offline, with most legacy hardware already retired.

Concentration among top mining countries

Hashrate Index data shows the top three countries control a majority of global hashrate. The United States holds the largest share at over 37%, followed by Russia at around 17% and China at 12%.

Philpot said hashrate among the largest players is roughly flat, but the mix is changing as legacy equipment is retired and modern hardware is deployed selectively to regions where it can remain profitable over the long term.

He also cited Canada as showing similar dynamics: a slight quarter-over-quarter pullback but positive year-over-year growth, reflecting optimization rather than an exodus.