Key Numbers

  • 84.01% — Bitcoin hashpower merged‑mined into Rootstock in Q1 2026 (Rootstock report, Confirmed)
  • 93.10% — Mining‑pool participation in merged mining during Q1 (Rootstock report, Confirmed)
  • 36.62% — Share of Rootstock security supplied by Foundry USA pool (Rootstock report, Confirmed)

Bottom Line

Rootstock now enjoys a security floor backed by the vast majority of Bitcoin miners. Investors should watch whether fee revenue scales, because without it the high hashrate adds little on‑chain value to BTC DeFi.

Rootstock’s Q1 2026 report shows 84.01% of Bitcoin’s total hashpower also secured its sidechain. If fee income stays flat, the security boost may not translate into higher returns for miners or liquidity for BTC‑based DeFi protocols.

Why This Matters to You

If you lend or provide liquidity on BTC‑DeFi platforms, the surge in hashpower could lower protocol risk but won’t improve yields unless transaction fees rise. Miners who already run Bitcoin hardware may capture modest extra BTC rewards, but the upside depends on on‑chain activity.

Hashrate Surge Does Not Guarantee Fee Growth

The most surprising fact is that despite 84.01% of Bitcoin’s hashrate securing Rootstock, the sidechain’s fee revenue remains modest (Rootstock report, Confirmed). High security alone does not drive usage; wallets, lending, and trading volume still dictate fee capture.

In Q1, Rootstock’s total fee income was unchanged from Q4 2025, even as more miners joined the merged‑mining pool. This suggests that miners are adding security without seeing proportional fee upside.

Pool Concentration Shapes Security Profile

Foundry USA contributed 36.62% of the merged‑mined hashpower, followed by AntPool (19.92%) and F2Pool (12.79%) (Rootstock report, Confirmed). A few large pools dominate, meaning the security layer is as centralized as Bitcoin’s core mining landscape.

Concentration raises a risk: if any of these pools shift strategy or face regulatory pressure, Rootstock could lose a sizable portion of its hashrate overnight.

On‑Chain Implications for BTC DeFi Liquidity

Rootstock’s smart‑contract layer enables BTC‑denominated lending, stablecoins, and DEX swaps. Yet the on‑chain activity metrics—such as total value locked (TVL) and transaction count—show flat growth in Q1 (Rootstock report, Confirmed). Without a surge in usage, the extra security does not improve capital efficiency for DeFi participants.

For investors, the key is to monitor TVL trends and fee per transaction; a rise would validate the security premium and could boost miner rewards.

What to Watch

  • Rootstock fee revenue and TVL updates (Q2 2026) — a jump could signal meaningful security monetization (this month)
  • Foundry USA’s mining allocation reports (June 2026) — any pullback may erode the 84% security share (next month)
  • U.S. regulatory actions on merged mining pools (Q3 2026) — new rules could reshape pool composition and on‑chain stability (Q3 2026)
Bull CaseBear Case
Fee revenue spikes as DeFi adoption accelerates, turning the hashrate advantage into higher miner rewards.Fee revenue stays flat, leaving miners with negligible extra income and exposing Rootstock to centralization risk.

Will the flood of Bitcoin hashpower finally unlock sustainable fee growth for BTC DeFi, or will it remain a security‑only headline?

Key Terms
  • Merged mining — The process of using the same proof‑of‑work hash to secure two compatible blockchains simultaneously.
  • Hashrate — The total computational power miners contribute to solving cryptographic puzzles on a network.
  • TVL (Total Value Locked) — The aggregate amount of assets deposited in a DeFi protocol.