SBF’s hedge fund-backed Bitcoin miner mulls US IPO: Report

July 3, 2024
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SBF’s hedge fund-backed Bitcoin miner mulls US IPO: Report

Photo credit: GDA

Bitcoin mining company Genesis Digital Assets is considering an initial public offering (IPO) in the United States, Bloomberg reported on July 2, as miners find alternative revenue streams post-halving.

GDA, backed by Sam Bankman-Fried’s former hedge fund Alameda Research, is reportedly consulting with advisers on the potential listing, with plans to raise pre-IPO funding scheduled for the coming weeks, Bloomberg said, citing “people familiar with the matter.”

Details of the fundraising plans could change as deliberations are still ongoing, the report added.

GDA: Pioneer in Bitcoin mining

The company’s beginnings trace back to 2013 when co-founder Marco Streng established what is known today as Genesis Group, a cloud-based information technology service provider. A year later, Streng formed GDA’s predecessor Genesis Mining, with a facility in Iceland. GDA was officially introduced as the group’s self-mining operation brand in 2021.

Alameda invested a total of $1.15 billion in GDA as of 2022. The investment amount values the company at $5.5 billion, according to an internal spreadsheet listing of FTX and Alameda’s venture portfolio, which is also shared on the miner’s website.

The crypto miner has no relation to Genesis Trading, whose lending unit suspended withdrawals in the wake of the collapse of Bankman-Fried’s crypto exchange FTX.

GDA has over 500 megawatts of power capacity across 20 data centers in North America, Europe, Central Asia, and South America. The company maintains offices in both Houston and Dubai, according to its website.

In May 2024, the firm expanded its operations by opening a 7 MW data center in Argentina through a partnership with energy company YPF Luz. It also established a new facility in Texas with an estimated 36 MW of power capacity.

Read more: Farms-turned crypto mining sites risk getting fined for area ‘misuse’: Report

Bitcoin miners ride the AI wave

GDA’s potential US public listing comes as crypto miners double-down on other viable revenue streams following the Bitcoin-halving event in April, which reduced the rewards for mining new BTC. To maintain profitability, some operators have already diversified their revenue streams, becoming key players in recent artificial intelligence (AI) deals.

On June 24, Miami-based Bitcoin miner announced a $150 million investment in private equity firm Coatue to help build its data center portfolio for AI. The next day, Core Scientific announced an expanded deal to deliver 70 megawatts of computing infrastructure to CoreWeave, an AI cloud-computing company backed by Nvidia.

Meanwhile, Bit Digital, which reportedly generates an estimated 27% of its revenue from AI, recently announced a three-year agreement to supply 2,048 Nvidia GPUs to a client, doubling its previous commitment and solidifying its shift towards AI-focused operations.

Read more: AI key to accelerating fight against climate change — Bill Gates

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