Luca Infeld – The Secret ROI of Bitcoin Mining | BTC Prague 2025 Keynote

Most people think Bitcoin mining is only for big players. At the BTC Prague stage, I shared why that mindset is wrong — and how individual investors can actually outperform publicly listed US miners by following three simple rules.

The Problem With How People Think About Mining

When I talk to people about Bitcoin mining, I keep hearing the same objections: electricity is too expensive, mining is only for large institutions, you can’t mine profitably in Europe or the US, mining is dead. I know this because at Munich International Mining, we have close to 1,000 customers — and the unhappy ones almost always share this mindset. They simply don’t know the secret behind real mining ROI.

Why Individual Investors Can Beat Public Miners

Let’s talk numbers. Large publicly listed US miners produce one bitcoin at a cost of roughly $80,000 to $120,000 — with electricity rates around 14 cents per kilowatt-hour. At today’s market price, that’s an extremely thin margin. But if you mine at 6 cents per kWh — which is achievable in places like Ethiopia or Paraguay — your base cost to mine one bitcoin drops to around $80,000. Apply the right strategy on top of that, and you can bring that number down to $30,000 to $40,000 per bitcoin. That’s nearly double the yield.

The Three Golden Rules

Rule one: never sell your bitcoin to fund mining. This is the number one mistake I see. If you sell one bitcoin to buy miners hoping to produce two, you may gain in fiat terms — but you could end up with fewer bitcoins overall. If you need liquidity, loan against your bitcoin instead. Services like Firefish make this accessible for smaller investors too.

Rule two: always pay electricity in fiat. Pay your hosting costs in dollars or euros, keep 100% of the bitcoin you mine, and let it appreciate. Mining is essentially converting fiat into bitcoin at a discount. The moment you pay electricity with bitcoin, you reduce your stack.

Rule three: stay active during the bear market. This is where the real opportunity hides. In a bear market, miner hardware gets cheap, difficulty can drop, and transaction fees can surprise you. Buy miners when prices are low, keep your fleet updated, and never stop accumulating.

Never Pay More Than Six Cents

My personal rule is simple: never pay more than 6 cents per kWh for hosting. Bitcoin’s price is unpredictable — it could drop to $30,000 again. At 6 cents or below, you stay protected and your cost-per-coin remains competitive regardless of market conditions.

Mining done right isn’t complicated. It’s about low electricity costs, paying in fiat, holding your bitcoin, and staying consistent. Follow these rules and your results will speak for themselves.