Marathon Digital, a Bitcoin miner, acknowledged the mining of a flawed block due to an error during a test aimed at enhancing the company’s processes.
The company shared details of the occurrence on X (previously known as Twitter), highlighting that they use a minor fraction of their hash rate for experimental purposes in the development pool to boost their mining performance.
Multiple sources have pointed out that the incorrect Bitcoin (BTC) block was mined at height 809478, attributing it to a glitch in their system.
“The mistake stemmed from an unexpected glitch during one of our tests.”
The company clarified that the identified error was unrelated to either the Bitcoin Core or the Marathon Digital’s main mining pool, emphasizing that Bitcoin operated as it should.
“While the incident was unintentional, it highlights the strong security measures of the Bitcoin network that promptly detected and corrected the irregularity.”
Community raises concerns
On Wednesday, Bitcoin developer 0xB10C pointed out an issue with Marapool related to incorrect spending outputs, a claim backed by other developers.
Within a short span, the community brought attention to the matter, with some pushing for comprehensive investigations. However, the miner clarified that the experiment was never meant to change Bitcoin’s core functions.
BTC developers, including one named “mononaut,” indicated the error arose from depending on increasing absolute fees to arrange transactions. Meanwhile, analyst Dylan LeClair suggested such experiments should first take place on a testnet before being implemented on Bitcoin’s mainnet.
Jameson Lopp, CasaHodl’s co-founder, viewed these occurrences as evidence of Bitcoin’s resilience, stating, “Bitcoin stands as an unbreakable bastion of validation. Double spending is a no-go!”
In the aftermath, the company’s stock price declined by 2.94% in the past day.
Marathon to increase capacity
Marathon Digital has unveiled its strategy to enhance the efficiency of its mining segment as it seeks to expand its operations.
The firm noted a remarkable 134% annual growth in its mining capacity this year. Despite market challenges and stringent regulations, it managed to reduce its net losses in the recent quarter and saw a revenue rise compared to the previous year.
In May, the company updated its hash rate growth by 22%, reaching 14 EH/s, and installation rates climbed by 16% to 17.9 EH/s. Additionally, the company reported an uptick in its free Bitcoin holdings, reaching 11,568 BTC.
Additionally, Marathon Digital is advancing its expansion plans into the Middle East through a collaboration with Zero Two. This partnership aims to enhance two mining locations in Abu Dhabi, boasting a total capacity of 250 megawatts.
This strategic move is set against the backdrop of challenges faced by miners, a rising BTC hashrate, and the anticipated BTC halving event, which is roughly 205 days from now.
