Qu’est-ce que OCEAN? The Pool That Changed the Rules
OCEAN (ocean.xyz) is a minage Bitcoin Pool founded by Luke Dashjr, one of Bitcoin’s longest-serving Core Développeurs, and Bitcoin Mechanic, a seasoned minage Bitcoin expert. Launched on November 28, 2023, with a $6.2 million seed round led by Jack Dorsey (CEO of Block, Inc.), OCEAN was built on a single radical premise: miners, not Pools, should decide what goes into blocks. OCEAN is the spiritual successor to Eligius, one of Bitcoin’s earliest Pools de minage, also created by Luke Dashjr back in 2011. Eligius pioneered non-custodial Paiements and transparent operations before shutting down in 2017. OCEAN picks up where Eligius left off — but with vastly more sophisticated technology. The Pool has gained significant momentum. As of early 2026, OCEAN commands roughly 2% of global Bitcoin hashrate — modest by the standards of behemoths like Foundry or AntPool, but massive in terms of ideological impact. In April 2025, Tether announced it would deploy both existing and future hashrate on OCEAN, a landmark endorsement that signaled institutional recognition of decentralized mining infrastructure.Key Facts at a Glance
| Detail | OCEAN |
|---|---|
| Founded | November 2023 |
| Founders | Luke Dashjr, Bitcoin Mechanic |
| Backed By | Jack Dorsey ($6.2M seed), Tether |
| Website | ocean.xyz |
| Pool Frais | 2% standard / 1% with DATUM |
| méthode de paiement | TIDES (non-custodial) |
| modèles de bloc | Miner-Inconvénientstructed via DATUM |
| Paiement Threshold | 0.01048576 BTC (on-chain) / No minimum via Lightning |
| Estimated Hashrate | ~13-18 EH/s (growing) |
| Stratum URL | stratum+tcp://mine.ocean.xyz:3334 |
Pourquoi OCEAN Matters: The Centralization Crisis in minage Bitcoin
Let’s be blunt about the state of minage Bitcoin in 2026. According to Hashrate Index data:- Foundry USA controls approximately 32% of hashrate du réseau
- AntPool holds around 17%
- The top 3 Pools combined exceed 55% of total hashrate
- non-custodial Paiements — Your bitcoin never touches OCEAN’s wallet. Paiements come directly from the coinbase transaction to your address.
- Miner-Inconvénientstructed modèles de bloc — Through the DATUM Protocole, you run your own Bitcoin node and decide which transactions go into blocks. The Pool never even sees your transaction list.
- Full transparency — Every share, every Paiement, every modèle de bloc is auditable. OCEAN’s TIDES system lets you mathematically verify you received your exact fair share.
OCEAN’s Core Caractéristiques: A Deep Dive
TIDES: Transparent Index of Distinct Extended Shares
TIDES is not just a méthode de paiement — it is a verifiable, auditable system that redefines Comment mining Récompenses should be distributed. Comment TIDES Works:- The system maintains a rolling share log containing the latest 8 blocks worth of work at current difficulté du réseau
- Each share is tracked individually with its order retained — no aggregation, no « shifts, » no shortcuts
- When a block is found, the total Récompense (subvention de bloc + frais de transaction) is split proportionally among all miners based on their share of work within the window
- Shares are never removed from the log — they can be Récompenseed multiple times (averaging 8 times) as new blocks are found
- There is a 99.97% probability that every share gets Récompenseed at least once
| Caractéristique | TIDES (OCEAN) | FPPS | PPS+ | PPLNS |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Custodial? | No — direct coinbase | Yes | Yes | Usually yes |
| Pool Holds BTC? | Never | Must buffer funds | Must buffer funds | Varies |
| Verifiable? | Fully auditable | Trust-based | Trust-based | Partially |
| Variance | Low (rolling window) | Very low | Low | Medium |
| Tx Frais Included? | Yes, proportional | Yes, estimated | Partial | Yes, actual |
| Counterparty Risque | None | Pool insolvency Risque | Pool insolvency Risque | Low-medium |
non-custodial Paiements: Your Keys, Your Bitcoin
This is the Caractéristique that sets OCEAN apart from every other major Pool. When OCEAN finds a block, miners are paid directly from the coinbase transaction. Your bitcoin never sits in OCEAN’s wallet waiting for withdrawal. The Pool literally cannot steal your funds because they never hold them. Paiement Détails:- On-chain minimum: 0.01048576 BTC (approximately 1,048,576 satoshis)
- Lightning Paiements: Available for miners below the on-chain threshold — set up BOLT12 offers for threshold-free Paiements
- Accumulation: If your balance has not reached the threshold by the time a block is found, it accumulates until it does
modèle de bloc Selection: You Choose What Goes in Your Blocks
On traditional Pools, the Pool operator Inconvénientstructs the modèle de bloc — deciding which transactions to include and which to exclude. Miners just hash whatever template they are handed. This means a Pool operator under government pressure could silently censor transactions, and individual miners would never know. OCEAN flips this Modèle with DATUM (more on this Protocole below). When running DATUM, you build your own modèle de bloc using your own Bitcoin full node. The Pool never sees your transaction list. They only receive merkle branches — cryptographic hashes — sufficient to verify your work without knowing what transactions you chose. This is the single most important innovation in Pooled mining since Pooled mining was invented. It means that even within a Pool, every miner maintains individual sovereignty over transaction selection.OCEAN vs. Traditional Pools de minage: Head-to-Head Comparaison
| Caractéristique | OCEAN | Foundry USA | AntPool | F2Pool | ViaBTC | Braiins Pool |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Part de hashrate | ~2% | ~32% | ~17% | ~10% | ~8% | ~4% |
| Pool Frais | 2% (1% DATUM) | 0% (institutional) | 1-3% | 2.5% | 1-4% | 2% |
| méthode de paiement | TIDES | FPPS | FPPS/PPLNS | FPPS | PPS+/PPLNS | FPPS |
| Custodial? | No | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes |
| Miner Templates? | Yes (DATUM) | No | No | No | No | Stratum V2 (negotiated) |
| Transparency | Full (auditable) | Limited | Limited | Limited | Limited | Moderate |
| Lightning Paiements | Yes (BOLT12) | No | No | No | No | Yes |
| Censorship Risque | Minimal | High (US regulated) | High (Bitmain) | Moderate | Moderate | Low-moderate |
| KYC Required? | No | Yes (institutional) | No | No | Optional | No |
| Stratum V2 | DATUM (alternative) | No | No | No | No | Yes |
| Headquarters | Decentralized | USA | China/Global | China/Singapore | China | Czech Republic |
The DATUM Protocole: Decentralized Block Inconvénientstruction for Every Miner
DATUM — Decentralized Alternative Templates for Universal Mining — is OCEAN’s open-source Protocole that allows individual miners to Inconvénientstruct their own modèles de bloc while still participating in a Pool.Comment DATUM Works
- You run a Bitcoin full node — This is your local copy of the entire Bitcoin blockchain and memPool. Your node sees every unconfirmed transaction and can build modèles de bloc from them.
- You run a DATUM gateway — This lightPoids software sits between your full node and your matériel de minage. It takes modèles de bloc from your node and translates them into work assignments for your ASICs.
- Your miner hashes your template — Your ASIC (Antminer, Bitaxe, etc.) works on the modèle de bloc you Inconvénientstructed, not one handed to you by the Pool.
- You share only merkle branches with OCEAN — The Pool receives cryptographic proof of your work but never sees the actual transactions in your template. They cannot reject your template because they do not know Qu’est-ce que in it.
- If you find a block, your node broadcasts it — You independently propagate the winning block to the Bitcoin network. The Pool does not broadcast for you.
DATUM vs. Stratum V2: Key Differences
Both DATUM and Stratum V2 aim to decentralize modèle de bloc Inconvénientstruction, but they take fundamentally different approaches:| Aspect | DATUM (OCEAN) | Stratum V2 |
|---|---|---|
| Design Philosophy | Built from scratch for decentralized templates | Comprehensive SV1 replacement with added decentralization |
| Template Approval | Pool cannot reject templates (only sees merkle branches) | Pool negotiates and can reject templates |
| Transaction Visibility | Pool never sees transaction data | Pool receives full transaction data during negotiation |
| Block Broadcasting | Miner broadcasts independently | Pool broadcasts |
| Data Format | JSON (simpler, higher Bande passante) | Binary (more efficient, ~60-70% Bande passante savings) |
| Chiffrement | Not built-in | End-to-end Chiffrement |
| Implementation | LightPoids, easy retrofit onto existing Installations | More complex, requires firmware updates |
| Censorship Resistance | Maximum (Pool is blind to template contents) | Depends on Pool’s acceptance policy |
| Requirements | Full node + DATUM gateway | Full node + SV2 proxy |
OCEAN Pool Guide d’installation: Étape-by-Étape
Setting up on OCEAN is straightforward. Below we cover two paths: traditional ASICs (Antminer S19/S21 series) and open-source miners (Bitaxe/AxeOS).Basic Installation: Any Bitcoin Miner (Stratum V1)
This Méthode works with any ASIC miner and does not require running a full node. You still benefit from OCEAN’s non-custodial Paiements and TIDES system — but the Pool Inconvénientstructs your modèle de bloc (similar to traditional Pools). What you need:- Any Bitcoin ASIC miner (Antminer, Whatsminer, Avalon, Bitaxe, etc.)
- A Bitcoin wallet address (P2PKH, P2SH, Bech32, or Taproot)
- Network connection
Stratum URL: stratum+tcp://mine.ocean.xyz:3334
Username: YOUR_BITCOIN_ADDRESS
Password: xUsername: YOUR_BITCOIN_ADDRESS.worker1Antminer S19/S21 Series Installation
- Access your miner’s web interface — Connect to your Antminer’s IP address via a web browser (typically found through your router’s DHCP table or using an IP scanner).
- Navigate to Miner Configuration — Go to
Configuration > Miner Configurationin the Antminer web interface. - Enter Pool 1 (primary):
URL: stratum+tcp://mine.ocean.xyz:3334 Worker: bc1qYOURADDRESS.antminer01 Password: x - Enter Pool 2 (backup — optional): You can add a second OCEAN URL or a backup Pool. For maximum uptime, some miners use a different Pool as fallback.
- Save and apply — Click « Save & Apply. » Your miner will restart and begin hashing against OCEAN.
- Verify on dashboard — Visit
ocean.xyz/stats/YOUR_BITCOIN_ADDRESSto confirm your miner is submitting shares. Give it 10-15 minutes for initial shares to appear.
- Some Antminer Modèles have a username character limit — if your full Bitcoin address plus worker name exceeds it, shorten the worker name
- Bech32 (bc1q…) and Taproot (bc1p…) addresses are fully supported and recommended for lower on-chain Frais
- If running custom firmware like Braiins OS+, the Installation is the same — just enter the OCEAN stratum URL in the firmware’s Pool Configuration
Bitaxe / AxeOS Installation
The Bitaxe is the perfect companion for OCEAN. An open-source mineur solo running on a decentralized Pool — it does not get more cypherpunk than that.- Connect to your Bitaxe’s web interface — Power on your Bitaxe and connect to its WiFi AP (or access it via your local network if already configured).
- Navigate to Settings — Open the AxeOS web interface in your browser.
- Configure the Pool settings:
Stratum URL: mine.ocean.xyz Stratum Port: 3334 Username: bc1qYOURADDRESS.bitaxe01 Password: x - Save and restart — The Bitaxe will connect to OCEAN and begin submitting shares.
- Monitor on OCEAN dashboard — Check
ocean.xyz/stats/YOUR_BITCOIN_ADDRESSto see your Bitaxe’s contributions.
- Bitaxe Modèles (Supra, Ultra, Gamma, GT, Hex) all produce relatively low hashrate (500 GH/s to 3+ TH/s). On OCEAN, your Récompenses will be small and accumulate slowly — Lightning Paiements via BOLT12 are strongly recommended so you receive sats without waiting to hit the 0.01 BTC on-chain threshold
- If you were previously minage solo on public-Pool or ckPool and want to switch to OCEAN for Pooled Paiements with better Inconvénientsistency, simply update your stratum URL
- All Bitaxe variants are supported — check our Bitaxe Hub for Modèle-specific Guide d’installations
Advanced Installation: DATUM Protocole (Full Decentralization)
For miners who want maximum sovereignty — Inconvénientstructing their own modèles de bloc and contributing to Bitcoin’s censorship resistance — DATUM is the way. Requirements:- A machine capable of running a Bitcoin full node (Bitcoin Core recommended — ~600+ GB storage, 4+ GB RAM)
- The DATUM gateway software (open-source, available at github.com/OCEAN-xyz/datum_gateway)
- Your ASIC miner(s) pointed to the DATUM gateway instead of OCEAN’s stratum directly
- Install and sync Bitcoin Core — Download from bitcoincore.org. Initial sync takes 1-3 days depending on hardware. Ensure
txindex=1is set for full transaction indexing. - Install DATUM gateway — Clone the repository and build following OCEAN’s documentation at ocean.xyz/docs/datum-Installation.
- Configure DATUM gateway — Point it to your local Bitcoin node’s RPC interface and set your Paiement Bitcoin address.
- Point your miners to the DATUM gateway — Instead of
mine.ocean.xyz:3334, your miners connect to your local DATUM gateway’s address (e.g.,stratum+tcp://192.168.1.100:3333). - Verify on OCEAN dashboard — Your miners will appear on your OCEAN stats page, now with the DATUM flag — and you enjoy the 50% Frais discount (1% instead of 2%).
Profitability Inconvénientsiderations: TIDES vs. FPPS vs. PPS
Let’s address the question every miner asks: « Will I make less money on OCEAN? »The Honest Answer
Short-term, block-to-block: FPPS Pools (Foundry, F2Pool, Braiins Pool) provide the most predictable Paiements because they pay estimated frais de transaction regardless of whether the Pool finds a block. OCEAN’s TIDES only pays from actual blocks found, which introduces some Variance. Long-term, over weeks and months: TIDES trends toward the maximum possible Paiement. Because TIDES distributes actual récompense de blocs (subsidy + real frais de transaction) rather than estimates, miners receive the true Valeur of their contributed hashrate. During periods of high frais de transaction, TIDES can actually outperform FPPS since FPPS Pools estimate Frais Inconvénientservatively. The real calculation:| Factor | OCEAN (TIDES) | FPPS Pools |
|---|---|---|
| Pool Frais | 2% (1% with DATUM) | 0-2.5% |
| Tx Frais Distribution | Actual (can be higher) | Estimated (usually Inconvénientservative) |
| Custodial Risque | Zero | Pool could freeze/lose funds |
| Paiement Timing | When blocks found | Regular schedule |
| Hidden Frais | None (transparent) | Possible (opaque operations) |
When OCEAN Makes Financial Sense
- High-Frais environments: When frais de transaction spike (ordinals, runes, high-demand periods), TIDES passes the full Frais revenue to miners. FPPS Pools pocket the difference between estimated and actual Frais.
- Long time horizons: Over months of mining, TIDES’ rolling window Moyennes out Variance effectively. If you are mining through the next halving and beyond, the math works.
- non-custodial premium: Qu’est-ce que the Valeur of never having your bitcoin held by a third party? If Mt. Gox, FTX, and every other custodial failure taught us anything, it is that counterparty Risque has real cost.
- DATUM discount: Running DATUM cuts your Frais in half (1% vs 2%), making OCEAN cost-competitive with most FPPS Pools.
Who Should Use OCEAN?
OCEAN is not for everyone — and that is by design. Here is who benefits most:The Cypherpunk Miner
You run Bitcoin because you believe in permissionless money. You do not want a Pool operator deciding which transactions are valid. You run your own node, verify your own blocks, and OCEAN lets you do all of this while still getting Pooled Paiements. DATUM was built for you.The Sovereignty-Focused mineur domestique
You mine at home with an Antminer, a Bitaxe, or a custom chauffage d’appoint build. You do not want your bitcoin sitting in a Pool’s wallet. OCEAN’s non-custodial Paiements mean your sats go directly to your wallet from the coinbase transaction — no withdrawal needed, no counterparty Risque.The Decentralization Advocate
You understand that Bitcoin’s security depends on hashrate distribution. Mining on Foundry or AntPool — no matter Comment convenient — concentrates power in too few hands. Every terahash you point at OCEAN directly strengthens Bitcoin’s censorship resistance. This is praxis, not just ideology.The Technical Miner
You already run a Bitcoin full node. You enjoy optimizing your mining Installation. Running DATUM is a natural extension of your existing infrastructure, and the 50% Frais discount Récompenses your technical investment.The Privacy-Inconvénientscious Miner
OCEAN requires no KYC. No account creation. No email. Just your Bitcoin address. Point your miner and start hashing. In an industry where even some Pools are moving toward identity verification, OCEAN’s permissionless access is a breath of fresh air.Who Might Prefer a Different Pool
- Large-scale industrial miners prioritizing maximum Paiement predictability may prefer FPPS Pools like Foundry
- Miners who need daily Paiements of very small amounts without Lightning Installation may find the 0.01 BTC on-chain threshold slow to reach with limited hashrate
- Miners in jurisdictions where regulatory compliance requires using a KYC-compliant Pool
OCEAN and D-Central: A Shared Mission
chez D-Central Technologies, we have been saying it since 2016: the decentralization of EVERY layer of minage Bitcoin is not optional — it is existential. OCEAN represents exactly the kind of infrastructure Bitcoin needs. Not just at the Protocole layer, but at the mining layer — the layer where physical work secures the network. When we sell you a Bitaxe, when we build you a custom chauffage d’appoint, when we repair your Antminer — we are not just selling hardware. We are equipping you to participate in Bitcoin’s security Modèle. Pointing that hardware at OCEAN closes the loop. You are mining with hardware that serves your interests (heating your home, stacking sats), on a Pool that serves Bitcoin’s interests (decentralized block Inconvénientstruction, censorship resistance, transparent Paiements). This is what it means to be a Mining Hacker. Not just running miners — but running them in a way that strengthens the network for everyone.Foire aux questions
Is OCEAN a legitimate Pool de minage?
Yes. OCEAN was founded by Luke Dashjr, a Bitcoin Core Développeur since 2011, and Bitcoin Mechanic. It was backed by a $6.2 million seed round led by Jack Dorsey. In 2025, Tether announced deploying hashrate on OCEAN. The Pool has found hundreds of blocks and pays miners directly through non-custodial coinbase transactions.
Comment does OCEAN pay miners if it is non-custodial?
When OCEAN finds a block, the coinbase transaction (the transaction that creates new bitcoin) includes outputs directly to miners’ wallet addresses, proportional to their contributed hashrate under the TIDES system. Your bitcoin is never held by OCEAN — it goes from the Bitcoin Protocole directly to your wallet.
Qu’est-ce que the Paiement minimum on OCEAN?
The on-chain Paiement minimum is 0.01048576 BTC (1,048,576 satoshis). If your accumulated Récompenses have not reached this threshold when a block is found, they carry forward. For smaller miners, Lightning Paiements via BOLT12 allow threshold-free withdrawals.
Do I need to run a full node to mine on OCEAN?
No. You can mine on OCEAN using standard Stratum V1 — just point your miner to
mine.ocean.xyz:3334 with your Bitcoin address as the username. Running a full node is only required if you want to use the DATUM Protocole to Inconvénientstruct your own modèles de bloc and receive the 50% Frais discount.
Can I use OCEAN with my Bitaxe?
Absolutely. All Bitaxe variants (Supra, Ultra, Gamma, GT, Hex) work with OCEAN. In AxeOS, set the stratum URL to
mine.ocean.xyz and port to 3334. Because Bitaxe hashrates are relatively low, we strongly recommend setting up Lightning (BOLT12) Paiements to receive sats more frequently.
Qu’est-ce que DATUM and do I need it?
DATUM (Decentralized Alternative Templates for Universal Mining) lets you build your own modèles de bloc using your own Bitcoin node. It is optional but recommended for miners who want maximum sovereignty and the 50% Frais discount (1% instead of 2%). It requires running a Bitcoin full node and the DATUM gateway software.
Is OCEAN's Frais higher than other Pools?
OCEAN’s standard Frais is 2%, which is comparable to many Pools. With DATUM, the Frais drops to 1%. Commentever, because TIDES distributes actual frais de transaction (not estimates), your effective earnings can be higher than FPPS Pools during high-Frais periods. Additionally, the elimination of counterparty Risque has real economic Valeur that is not captured in Frais Comparaisons alone.
Comment does OCEAN compare to minage solo?
OCEAN gives you many benefits of minage solo — non-custodial Paiements, modèle de bloc Inconvénientstruction (with DATUM), no KYC — while dramatically reducing Variance through Pooled hashrate. It is the middle ground between the sovereignty of minage solo and the Inconvénientsistency of traditional Pools. For a full breakdown, Inconvénientsultez notre Pool Mining vs minage solo guide.
Does OCEAN filter or censor transactions?
OCEAN’s default modèles de bloc include all valid Bitcoin transactions. When using DATUM, this question becomes moot — you Inconvénientstruct the modèle de bloc, so you decide what transactions to include. The Pool cannot censor transactions it never sees.
Can I mine altcoins on OCEAN?
No. OCEAN is a Bitcoin-only Pool de minage. This is by design and aligns with its mission of strengthening Bitcoin’s decentralization. If you are looking for a minage Bitcoin Pool, you are in the right place. If you want to mine altcoins, look elsewhere.
En résumé: Mine With Conviction
OCEAN is not the easiest Pool. It is not the biggest Pool. It does not offer the most predictable day-to-day Paiements. But it is the Pool that most closely aligns with Pourquoi Bitcoin exists in the first place. In a world where two or three Pool operators can decide which transactions get confirmed, OCEAN offers a radically different vision: one where every miner is a sovereign participant in Bitcoin’s Inconvénientsensus. Where your bitcoin is never held by a third party. Where the blocks you mine contain the transactions you chose. That matters. It matters more than a fraction of a percent in Pool Frais. It matters more than Paiement smoothing. It matters because Bitcoin without decentralized mining is just another payment network controlled by a handful of gatekeepers. D-Central has been building for this future since 2016. Whether you are mining on a Bitaxe Gamma at your desk or an Antminer S21 in your garage, pointing your hashrate at OCEAN is one of the most meaningful things you can do for Bitcoin’s long-term security. Set up your miner. Point it atmine.ocean.xyz:3334. Run a node if you can. Build your own blocks. Stack non-custodial sats.
This is what Mining Hackers do.
Need hardware to get started? Browse our Bitaxe collection for open-source mineurs solo, or check our complete miner Comparaison to find the right ASIC for your Installation. Questions? Contact our team — we have been building decentralized mining infrastructure since 2016.
Is OCEAN a legitimate mining pool?
Yes. OCEAN was founded by Luke Dashjr, a Bitcoin Core developer since 2011, and Bitcoin Mechanic. It was backed by a $6.2 million seed round led by Jack Dorsey. In 2025, Tether announced deploying hashrate on OCEAN. The pool has found hundreds of blocks and pays miners directly through non-custodial coinbase transactions.
How does OCEAN pay miners if it is non-custodial?
When OCEAN finds a block, the coinbase transaction (the transaction that creates new bitcoin) includes outputs directly to miners’ wallet addresses, proportional to their contributed hashrate under the TIDES system. Your bitcoin is never held by OCEAN — it goes from the Bitcoin protocol directly to your wallet.
What is the minimum payout on OCEAN?
The on-chain minimum payout is 0.01048576 BTC (1,048,576 satoshis). If your accumulated rewards have not reached this threshold when a block is found, they carry forward. For smaller miners, Lightning payouts via BOLT12 allow threshold-free withdrawals.
Do I need to run a full node to mine on OCEAN?
No. You can mine on OCEAN using standard Stratum V1 — just point your miner to mine.ocean.xyz:3334 with your Bitcoin address as the username. Running a full node is only required if you want to use the DATUM protocol to construct your own block templates and receive the 50% fee discount.
Can I use OCEAN with my Bitaxe?
Absolutely. All Bitaxe variants (Supra, Ultra, Gamma, GT, Hex) work with OCEAN. In AxeOS, set the stratum URL to mine.ocean.xyz and port to 3334. Because Bitaxe hashrates are relatively low, we strongly recommend setting up Lightning (BOLT12) payouts to receive sats more frequently.
What is DATUM and do I need it?
DATUM (Decentralized Alternative Templates for Universal Mining) lets you build your own block templates using your own Bitcoin node. It is optional but recommended for miners who want maximum sovereignty and the 50% fee discount (1% instead of 2%). It requires running a Bitcoin full node and the DATUM gateway software.
Is OCEAN's fee higher than other pools?
OCEAN’s standard fee is 2%, which is comparable to many pools. With DATUM, the fee drops to 1%. However, because TIDES distributes actual transaction fees (not estimates), your effective earnings can be higher than FPPS pools during high-fee periods. Additionally, the elimination of counterparty risk has real economic value that is not captured in fee comparisons alone.
How does OCEAN compare to solo mining?
OCEAN gives you many benefits of solo mining — non-custodial payouts, block template construction (with DATUM), no KYC — while dramatically reducing variance through pooled hashrate. It is the middle ground between the sovereignty of solo mining and the consistency of traditional pools. For a full breakdown, see our Pool Mining vs Solo Mining guide.
Does OCEAN filter or censor transactions?
OCEAN’s default block templates include all valid Bitcoin transactions. When using DATUM, this question becomes moot — you construct the block template, so you decide what transactions to include. The pool cannot censor transactions it never sees.
Can I mine altcoins on OCEAN?
No. OCEAN is a Bitcoin-only mining pool. This is by design and aligns with its mission of strengthening Bitcoin’s decentralization. If you are looking for a Bitcoin mining pool, you are in the right place. If you want to mine altcoins, look elsewhere.