What Is the Economic Incentive for a Miner to Rent out Their Hashrate Instead of Mining Directly?
A miner might choose to rent out their hashrate when the rental rate offers a more stable and predictable income stream than direct mining. Direct mining involves risk from coin price volatility, fluctuating difficulty, and luck in finding a block.
By renting, the miner locks in a guaranteed rate of return for their computational power, effectively hedging against these risks. This is particularly attractive during periods of high price volatility or when a miner's target coin is experiencing low profitability.