Bitcoin miners stop 'HODLing,' start selling as crypto crashes and energy costs rise

Right now, even some of the quintessential "hodlers" are selling because of the current state of the coin.

According to a new report, miners of the digital currency have been unloading their holdings over the last two months.

According to the digital asset analysis firm, there was an unusual trend in the month of May. In the previous month, miners only sold off around 20 percent of the Bitcoin that they were able to mine, and the rest of their rewards were held in hopes of higher profits as the value of the virtual currency increased.

Over the past few months, things have gone in a different direction, forcing some miners to sell off their holdings if they don't want to shut down

Transactions inside of a block are added to the chain in order to maintain the ledger. The process to verify a transaction is often explained by computers as they solve advanced mathematical equations. The miners are rewarded when a block is added.

With a single Bitcoin trading in the mid- to-high five figures, the endeavor may not be as lucrative as it was in the past.

A lot of computer processing power is needed in order to be the first to verify a block of transactions. As time goes on, the process gets more complicated and expensive.

Competition grew as the currency hit all-time highs, meaning more machine-power was needed by miners in order to earn more. The amount of energy consumed by all of this is staggering. The countries of Kazakhstan and the Philippines use more electricity than the miners of the digital currency. With energy costs increasing, the profits of the mining business are decreasing.

Setting aside energy and competition, there isn't likely to be any more money for the miners. After every 200,000 blocks are mined, the reward is halved. Roughly every four years, this occurs. The reward is going to be cut in approximately a year and a half.

Everyone else has to tighten their belts as well. Competition may not be as strong as it used to be, making it easier for miners to earn rewards. How much will the currency crash? Terra's failure caused a further decline in the market and how long until the next shoe drops? Some miners are selling off their equipment. The business of mining for the digital currency is still going strong. The profitable times seem to have ended.