Bitcoin miners are experiencing a windfall, with earnings reaching all-time highs last week as the price of the leading cryptocurrency has risen to a new record above $72,000.

Asset manager VanEck is moving to attract investors to its spot Bitcoin exchange-traded fund (ETF), the VanEck Bitcoin Trust (HODL), by cutting sponsor fees to zero for the first $1.5 billion invested in the fund until March 31, 2025.

Gnosis Chain, a blockchain network operating alongside Ethereum, has become the first platform to activate a version of the highly anticipated Dencun upgrade, which paves the way for cheaper and more accessible decentralized applications on the Ethereum ecosystem.

Top stories in the Crypto Roundup today:

• Bitcoin Miner Revenue Soars to Record High
• VanEck Temporarily Slashes Spot Bitcoin ETF Fees to Zero
• Gnosis Chain Pioneers Dencun Hard Fork
• Institutional Investors Shift Focus Towards Ethereum As Options And Derivatives Outpace Bitcoin

Bitcoin Miner Revenue Soars to Record High

Bitcoin miners are experiencing a windfall, with earnings reaching all-time highs last week as the price of the leading cryptocurrency has risen to a new record above $72,000.

According to data from CryptoQuant, daily miner revenue peaked at $78.6 million on March 7, surpassing a previous record set in April 2021 during the last major cryptocurrency bull run.

Bitcoin miners earn revenue through blocks found, with each of these blocks including a set coinbase reward of 6.25 BTC that’s going to be halved next month, along with the transaction fees paid to include transactions in that block.

Bitcoin’s upcoming halving event is pre-programmed to occur every 210,000 blocks, or around every four years, and is part of the network’s monetary policy to reduce supply growth.

For miners, this surge represents a significant turnaround from the depths of the "crypto winter," when several companies succumbed to bankruptcy over depressed BTC prices. The Valkyrie Bitcoin Miners ETF, which invests in cryptocurrency mining firms, has more than doubled in value over the past year, reflecting the renewed optimism in the sector.

VanEck Temporarily Slashes Spot Bitcoin ETF Fees to Zero

Asset manager VanEck is moving to attract investors to its spot Bitcoin exchange-traded fund (ETF), the VanEck Bitcoin Trust (HODL), by cutting sponsor fees to zero for the first $1.5 billion invested in the fund until March 31, 2025.

Previously, the sponsor fee for HODL stood at 0.20% of net assets under management for funds exceeding $1.5 billion. VanEck announced that because the firm believes in Bitcoin, it’s cutting sponsor fees.

The VanEck Bitcoin Trust ETF received approval from the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) on January 4th of this year and currently holds $297.86 million in assets under management, holding 4,299 Bitcoin.

Gnosis Chain Pioneers Dencun Hard Fork

Gnosis Chain, a blockchain network operating alongside Ethereum, has become the first platform to activate a version of the highly anticipated Dencun upgrade, which paves the way for cheaper and more accessible decentralized applications in the Ethereum ecosystem.

The upgrade introduces blob transactions through Ethereum Improvement Proposal (EIP) 4844, which essentially allows for more data to be included in each block without overloading the network. This increased data capacity translates to lower transaction fees, a major hurdle for widespread adoption.

Gnosis Chain, formerly known as xDai Chain, serves as a "sidechain" to Ethereum, and is overseen by GnosisDAO.  The network has a total value locked (TVL) of over $320 million, with major decentralized applications including Balancer, Spark, Aave, and Aura.

The Dencun upgrade is set to go live on the Ethereum mainnet tomorrow, March 13, at 1:55 UTC.

Institutional Investors Shift Focus Towards Ethereum As Options And Derivatives Outpace Bitcoin

In February, total derivatives trading volumes on the CME increased by 1.58% to $96.4 billion. Bitcoin futures trading saw a modest rise of 0.31% to $74.2 billion, while Ethereum futures trading climbed by 3.25% to $17.1 billion.

The trading volume of BTC options on the exchange increased by 8.21%, reaching $1.70 billion. Concurrently, the trading volume of ETH options surged to a record high, with a 26.4% increase to $655 million.

This trend may indicate a growing interest from institutional investors in Ethereum, ahead of its upcoming Dencun upgrade and the possibility of a spot Ethereum ETF being approved later this year.

Dig deeper into the world of cryptocurrency trading with CCData’s latest Exchange Review report.

State of the Crypto by Top Tier Exchange Volume

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