CoinDesk Podcast Network THE MINING POD: Operation Red Sunset, the White House’s Genesis Mission, Tether Buys BTDR, RAM Prices Soar
Nov 28, 2025
This week, the hosts dive into the U.S. government's Operation Red Sunset, targeting Bitmain over national security. They discuss record-low hash prices and the impact on small miners shutting down operations. There's buzz around Hive's $300 million offering for expansion and Tether's renewed investment in BitDeer. Gamers express frustration as DDR5 RAM prices skyrocket, driven by AI demand, while critiques of Cardano's recent outage raise eyebrows. The blend of market strategies and tech challenges keeps the conversation lively!
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Brutal Mining Economics
- Hashprice has plunged to all-time low territory around $36/PH/day, squeezing miner economics hard.
- Difficulty turned negative twice in a row, signalling sustained revenue stress despite rising hashrate.
Small Miners Are Shutting Off
- Charlie says small independent miners (1–5MW) who didn't upgrade from older S19 machines are shutting down.
- He describes this as a possible capitulation era for private miners without access to public markets or capital.
Operation Red Sunset Targets Bitmain
- The Department of Homeland Security launched Operation Red Sunset to probe Bitmain over national security concerns.
- The focus is on Bitmain-affiliated U.S. operators and potential exposure of grid or proprietary energy data, not a blanket claim all machines are Trojan horses.