Over the past six days, Bitcoin miners have earned less than 2 Bitcoin from Runes transactions, a substantial drop compared to the record high of 884 Bitcoin on April 24.

Runes, a new token standard on the Bitcoin blockchain, saw its daily transaction count drop by over 88% in June. According to Dune Analytics data from Crypto Koryo, the average number of Runes transactions between June 22 and 28 was 37,820, nearly 90% less than the 331,040 daily average between June 9 and 15.

On June 24, only 23,238 transactions were made, the lowest since the protocol launched during Bitcoin’s fourth halving event on April 20.

Runes transactions accounted for only 4.9% to 11.1% of all Bitcoin transactions in the past week. This decline has significantly impacted miner fees. Miners are still feeling the effects of the last halving, with Runes contributing less than 2 Bitcoin to fees over the past six days. In comparison, this was 884 Bitcoin on April 24. Fees from Ordinals inscriptions and BRC-20 tokens were even lower during the same period.

These protocols were initially promoted as a new revenue stream for miners, who previously relied on regular peer-to-peer Bitcoin transactions for fees. Fees from Runes and Ordinals helped cover the 50% reduction in block subsidy following the April 20 halving, but trading volumes have since been unpredictable.

Runes, developed by Ordinals inventor Casey Rodarmor, was launched on April 20 and marketed as a more efficient way to create new tokens on the Bitcoin network than the BRC-20 token standard and other solutions.

The decline in network fees and Bitcoin’s price has caused Bitcoin’s hash price—a key metric for measuring miner revenue—to drop to nearly its lowest level ever. Additionally, Bitcoin miners’ reserves fell to 1.90 million Bitcoin on June 19, the lowest level in over 14 years.

Conclusion

The sharp drop in Runes transactions has significantly impacted miners’ earnings. It highlights how quickly dynamics within the crypto world can change. For Bitcoin miners, this means a period of adjustment and seeking new strategies to stabilize their income.