Bitcoin’s hashrate reached an all-time high over the weekend, despite many miners being forced to move operations out of Kazakhstan.

Fast facts

• The total Bitcoin hashrate surged by 31.7% to an all-time high of 248.11 exahashes per second in raw values on Saturday, according to data from Blockchain.com.
  

• The latest hashrate read at 209.63 EH/s on Sunday.
  

• Hashrate refers to the amount of computational power used to verify transactions in a proof-of-work blockchain like Bitcoin, but is often criticized for its intensive energy consumption.
  

• Bitcoin’s hashrate has steadily recovered since July after China’s crypto ban sent miners fleeing to more hospitable destinations, when many found refuge in neighboring Kazakhstan.
  

• However, political chaos and power shortages are now causing miners to flee the Central Asian nation that recently became the world’s second-largest Bitcoin producer in the aftermath of China’s mining exodus.