Bitcoin's major milestone 🌟

The 20 millionth Bitcoin was mined this week. Experts say many miners won't stick around to try and claim the rest.

Author

Andrew Hayward
March 14, 2026

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đź“ť What you need to know

Bitcoin notched a major milestone this week when the 20 millionth coin was mined out of a total possible supply of 21 million BTC—which means there’s less than a million Bitcoin left to be unlocked. It took roughly 16 years to get to this point, but thanks to block rewards being halved every few years, it could take 115 years to mine the rest.

Whether today’s top mining firms will still be plugging away at the task for much longer remains to be seen, as analysts told Decrypt that they expect the field to thin out further in the years to come. The allure of powering growing AI and high-performance computing needs has already pulled some firms away from mining, and experts see the squeeze coming ahead of 2028’s next halving event.

Bitcoin Hit a Major Milestone—Most Miners Won't Be Around for the Next One

The 20 millionth Bitcoin was mined March 2026, leaving 1 million BTC to be issued as block rewards to miners in near-breakeven economics.

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“Block rewards will decrease, but that does not mean the industry will disappear. It means the bar rises. The miners that survive will be the ones with the best power, the best sites, and the most flexibility.”

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