Bitcoin Mining Leader MARA Holdings Announces $2 Billion Stock Offering to Increase Its Reserves

Bitcoin mining leader MARA Holdings Inc. announced a major $2 billion stock offering to increase its reserves.

Major bitcoin (BTC) mining leader MARA Holdings Inc (NASDAQ:MARA) announced a significant capital-raising initiative with a planned stock offering of up to $2 billion. The company, renowned for its ‘full HODL’ approach to bitcoin, will use the offering to further increase its bitcoin reserves.

What Happened: MARA disclosed its plans for the at-the-market (ATM) offering in a March 28 Form 8-K filing with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission.

The capital raising will be managed by several major financial institutions including Barclays (NYSE:BCS), Cantor Fitzgerald and Guggenheim Securities. The ATM structure allows for more flexibility in share sales compared to traditional offerings, providing the company with the capability to sell shares when needed without a set schedule.

The offering will be used primarily to fund bitcoin purchases, highlighting MARA’s strong commitment to its cryptocurrency strategy.

Why It’s Important: MARA’s move to raise capital comes as several publicly traded firms are increasingly adding bitcoin to their corporate treasury strategies. Similar to Strategy’s (NASDAQ:STGY) successful bitcoin treasury plan, which has seen the company accumulate over 506,000 bitcoin, MARA is using capital-raising instruments like stock offerings and convertible bonds to expand its bitcoin holdings.

Earlier this year, MARA received approval for a new $1.5 billion ATM program and completed a $1 billion convertible note offering in November to support the expansion of its bitcoin reserves. These efforts will be instrumental in executing its bitcoin accumulation strategy.

In its recent prospectus for the capital raising, MARA stated that the funds will support general corporate needs, which includes expanding its bitcoin treasury. This underscores the company’s strong focus on bitcoin adoption within its broader financial strategy.

The Impact: MARA’s capital-raising activities highlight the significant industry shift toward direct bitcoin purchases by miners in 2024. This contrasts with the previous period, particularly after the last bitcoin halving event in 2020, where miners focused more on accumulating the cryptocurrency through mining operations.

However, with the reduced mining rewards and increased operational costs, some miners are finding it more cost-effective to raise capital and buy bitcoin directly.

This hybrid approach helps in managing the inherent volatility in bitcoin mining and allows miners like MARA to quickly increase their holdings according to market conditions. As energy costs rise and block rewards diminish, miners are being forced to adapt to remain competitive.

Now: MARA shares are up over 250% year-to-date and closed Friday’s session at $23.74.