Another participant of the Solo CKPool pool independently found Bitcoin block #974,893. This case became the 319th such incident since the platform's launch, underscoring the sustained interest in solo mining as a high-risk, high-reward strategy.
According to the service administrator Con Kolivas, the miner employed a computing power of about 581 TH/s, while its main worker provided 564 TH/s. For equipment with such a hashrate, the probability of finding a block is estimated at approximately 1 in 35 over the course of a year — a rare but by no means impossible event that requires patience and significant resources.
The miner's reward amounted to 3.1335 BTC, equivalent to approximately $238,000 at the time of the transaction. This sum includes both the block subsidy and transaction fees, highlighting the importance of the fee component for solo miners.
The case demonstrates that solo mining remains a viable, albeit extremely risky, strategy for individual participants. Unlike pools, where rewards are distributed proportionally to contribution, a solo miner receives the entire block in full, but only on the condition of a lucky hash. The probability of success depends directly on the ratio of the miner's hashrate to the total power of the Bitcoin network.
Cryptalist Analysis: The incident with block #974,893 illustrates the enduring appeal of solo mining for operators with limited capacities who are prepared for extended periods without reward. Given the growing network difficulty and the consolidation of hashrate in large pools, such events will remain statistically rare but psychologically significant for the community. Institutional players should view solo mining as a speculative instrument rather than a sustainable business model.