Lubian.com, a secretive mining pool that amassed a large amount of bitcoin over a short period of time, has simply stopped mining, according to multiple on-chain data sources. Why they stopped and what they’re doing now is unknown.
This article looks at pieces of on-chain data that show the complete lack of activity from Lubian after amassing a small fortune in mined bitcoin.
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Who is Lubian?
Very little is known about Lubian, but it’s believed that the pool operated privately and was founded and managed by Chinese miners. The pool started mining in March 2020, according to miner balance data from Glassnode. BTC.com shows Lubian first solving blocks in April 2020.
But the mining operation hasn’t claimed a block reward since Feb. 28 when it solved block 672,636.
Most of Lubian’s machines are believed to have been running mostly in Iran with some machines probably also running in China before the mining crackdown. Although its website is still online, Lubian appears to have rebranded into Roadside Mining.
Beyond this information, the mining operation remains a mystery. Lubian avoids media attention and other external communications religiously. All that’s left for onlookers is some scraps of on-chain data that give glimpses into the mysterious private pool.
How big is Lubian?
Between May 2020 and February 2021 when its mining operations appeared to be in full motion, Lubian averaged roughly 174 blocks mined per month.
According to wallet balance data from Glassnode, Lubian amassed over 16,200 BTC in nearly a year of mining. At the market’s peak in April, these coins were worth over $1 billion.
As the above chart shows, Lubian’s holdings have completely plateaued. The end of accumulation by Lubian-labeled addresses coincides with it ceasing to solve blocks and continue hashing, according to BTC.com and Nakamoto.Observer, a hashrate visualization website.
What happened to Lubian?
Given the pool’s operational secrecy, knowing exactly why they seem to have stopped mining is impossible. Based on general assumptions about where its machines operated (Iran and China), it’s reasonable to guess that mining bans from both countries at least hindered its ongoing mining operations. Perhaps these bans caused Lubian to close down permanently.
In roughly a year of mining,this secretive pool collected a small fortune in the bitcoins it mined. If the Lubian team is still out there mining, however, all miners wish them happy hashing.
