Bitcoin Overnight: A Flat Close, a Miner Hashrate Cut, and a $103,000 Fee Mistake
Bitcoin closed Thursday dead flat at $63,402 as public miners cut hashrate toward AI hosting deals, Metaplanet's CEO denied selling bitcoin, and one transaction paid $103,000 in fees for nothing.
BY MARISOL VEGA6 MIN READ
Bitcoin traded near $63,400 through the Asian session as mining, corporate treasury and transaction-fee stories shaped the overnight tape.
A dead-flat close
Bitcoin closed Thursday at $63,402, essentially unchanged on the day, extending the same $62,000–$66,000 range that has held since the July CPI print — see last night's full market wrap for how that range has behaved this week. Trading through the Asia session overnight stayed quiet, with no single catalyst pushing price toward either edge of the band.
Miners keep cutting hashrate, not adding it
Public bitcoin miners cut their combined hashrate by 13.4%, as more of their power contracts and data-center capacity shift toward AI and high-performance-computing hosting revenue instead of mining. It's the same pivot behind deals like TeraWulf's hosting agreement with Anthropic, and it's happening because hosting AI workloads now pays more reliably than mining at current hashprice levels, which have sat near breakeven for weeks.
Metaplanet denies selling, announces "BitBonds"
Metaplanet CEO Simon Gerovich again denied the company sold any bitcoin, following this week's $322 million custody transfer that triggered sell-off speculation. Gerovich also said Metaplanet is launching a bond product called "BitBonds," though the company hasn't yet detailed its structure or terms.
$103,000 paid in fees, zero bitcoin delivered
Someone sent a transaction that paid 1.60 BTC — about $103,000 — entirely as a network transaction fee, with no bitcoin delivered to any recipient. The pattern is consistent with an automated fee-estimation script that malfunctioned and kept escalating the fee rate without a safeguard to cap it, a known failure mode when wallet software or custom scripts don't sanity-check fee inputs before broadcasting.
Elsewhere overnight
Bullish, the crypto exchange, saw its shares jump roughly 10-14% after subscription revenue offset a Q2 net loss driven mostly by a $244.6 million markdown on its own bitcoin holdings. Thailand introduced a five-year personal income tax exemption on crypto trading gains through 2029. Bitcoin Asia 2026, running August 27-28 in Hong Kong, confirmed Binance founder Changpeng Zhao (CZ) on its speaker lineup. Western Union launched a new stablecoin card built on Solana, with Asia positioned as its first real test market. And spot crypto trading volume across the 14 major exchanges tracked fell 21.7% in July.
WHY IT MATTERS
The hashrate cut is the more structural story here: miners choosing AI hosting over mining at current hashprice levels is a signal about mining economics, not a one-night data point. The $103,000 fee mistake is a reminder that automated broadcasting without a fee cap remains a real, avoidable risk on Bitcoin's fee market.
What to watch next
1.Whether more public miners announce AI/HPC hosting deals as hashprice stays compressed.
2.Details on Metaplanet's "BitBonds" product once the company discloses its structure.
3.Whether the $62,000–$66,000 range finally breaks as the September 15 CLARITY Act vote and September 16 Fed decision approach.
Frequently asked questions
Why are bitcoin miners cutting hashrate?
Public miners are redirecting power and data-center capacity toward AI and high-performance-computing hosting contracts, which now pay more reliably than mining at current hashprice levels, cutting reported hashrate 13.4%.
How did a Bitcoin transaction pay $103,000 in fees for nothing?
A transaction sent 1.60 BTC entirely as a miner fee, with zero BTC delivered to any output, consistent with an automated fee-estimation script that malfunctioned and escalated the fee rate uncontrollably.
Is Metaplanet selling its bitcoin?
No. CEO Simon Gerovich said the company's $322 million custody transfer earlier this week was a routine operation, not a sale, and announced Metaplanet is launching a bond product called BitBonds.
SOURCES & DATA
Yahoo Finance — Metaplanet CEO shuts down BTC sale fears, August 2026 ↗
CoinDesk — Markets coverage, August 14, 2026 ↗
mempool.space — on-chain transaction and fee data ↗
Education, not financial advice. See our editorial process and corrections policy.
TERMS IN THIS STORY
Marisol Vega
Bitcoin Almanack's editorial byline for Bitcoin markets, spot ETF flows, institutional activity, regulation, and daily news.
Sources, standards & corrections
Sources are linked inline. Read our editorial information, AI disclosure and corrections policy, or report an error.
Sources are linked inline. Read our editorial information, AI disclosure and corrections policy, or report an error.