Ben Strack

Bitdeer has become one of the biggest bitcoin miners in the world by market capitalization just three months after going public.&nbsp;



The company’s stock began trading on Nasdaq on April 14 <a href="https://blockworks.co/news/bitdeer-to-go-public">via a special purpose acquisition company (SPAC) merger</a> with Blue Safari Group Acquisition Corp.&nbsp;



Bitdeer CEO Matt Linghui Kong told Blockworks in an email that the company’s listing provides it with “increased visibility and credibility.”&nbsp;



“We strategically deployed five mining data centers, including two mining data centers in Norway and three more in the US, with expansion plans to create more local jobs and build up more key positions in the company based in the US,” he added. “Becoming a public company will enable us to reach these twin goals.”



The firm’s ride on the stock market hasn’t been without its bumps. Bitdeer’s stock price closed at $7.03 on its first day of trading and dropped to as low as $4.60 in the following weeks, according to Peter Stoneberg, a managing director at crypto advisory firm Architect Partners.



But the stock was trading at roughly $14 on Monday morning, up about 31% from a month ago.&nbsp;



Bitdeer’s market capitalization stands at $1.56 billion, behind only Marathon Digital and Riot Platforms among publicly traded miners. The stock prices of Marathon and Riot are up 70% and 52%, respectively, over the past month.



“Wall Street was struggling to find stocks that get you crypto exposure, and Bitdeer cornered a big part of crypto mining,” OANDA senior market analyst Ed Moya said. “A lot of crypto traders like the Ordinals protocol that could help with growth for NFTs and meme-token transactions.”&nbsp;&nbsp;



Bitdeer’s low public float — referring to the number of shares available to the public — has contributed to its stock price jump, Stoneberg said.



“Only 24% of the company&#8217;s outstanding shares are held by the public, and the average daily trading volume is only about 100,000 shares,” Stoneberg explained. “This low float makes the stock more volatile, as news can drive the price up or down significantly.”



<h2 class="wp-block-heading">Eyeing hash rate growth, global expansion&nbsp;</h2>



The hash rate for Singapore-based Bitdeer, founded in 2018, stood at 18.8 exahashes per second (EH/s) at the end of June. And the amassing of that computing power has caught the eye of stock watchers in the market.



The company’s revenue generation across self-mining, cloud mining and hosting services give it “an attractive business model,” Stoneberg said.&nbsp;



Bill Cannon, head of portfolio management at Valkyrie, said Bitdeer’s continued mining infrastructure build-out worldwide has also been a boon to the stock’s recent rise.&nbsp;



Bitdeer is a top-10 holding in Valkyrie’s Bitcoin Miners ETF (WGMI).&nbsp;&nbsp;



Bitdeer said earlier this month that its 100 megawatt (MW) mining data center in Bhutan — set to boost its hash rate by 3.3 EH/s — is expected to begin operating this month. The plans to complete construction come after 10,000 mining machines arrived at the facility last month, according to Linghui Kong.&nbsp;



The data center will be the company’s first in Asia and will operate at carbon neutrality as a result of Bhutan’s hydroelectric power generation, the Bitdeer CEO said.



Read more: <a href="https://blockworks.co/news/bitdeer-bhutan-mining-project">Bitdeer counting on big funding for Bhutan mining project — Is it plausible?</a>



The company has begun constructing a 175 MW immersion cooling data center at its facility in Norway. Completion of that project is expected in 2025.&nbsp;



“This projected rise in production and efficiency will compete with much of the larger industrial players in the sector while carrying positive momentum into the halving period next year,” Cannon told Blockworks.&nbsp;



Bitdeer also recently announced a share buyback program of up to $1 million.&nbsp;



“This is a positive signal to the market, as it shows that the company is confident in its future prospects,” Stoneberg said. “However, the buyback program is not very material, given Bitdeer&#8217;s…market capitalization.”



<h2 class="wp-block-heading">More crypto firms to go public?</h2>



Bitdeer’s initial public offering (IPO) is similar to other SPAC deals that have been popular in recent years, Cannon said. Recently, SPAC-type IPOs have become more rare due to macroeconomic and regulatory conditions.



There were 613 SPAC IPOs in 2021, but only 86 in 2022, <a href="https://www.statista.com/statistics/1178249/spac-ipo-usa/">according</a> to Statista. The pace has slowed even further this year — the first five months of 2023 saw the debut of just 14 SPACs.



Though such deals have declined, Cannon added, more could be on the horizon as crypto enjoys more institutional attention.&nbsp;



Stablecoin issuer Circle <a href="https://blockworks.co/news/circle-kills-spac-plans">canceled</a> its SPAC deal in December, <a href="https://blockworks.co/news/circles-public-listing-plans-undeterred">but still intends to go public</a>.&nbsp;



Cloud mining firm BitFuFu delayed its IPO plans via a merger with SPAC Arisz Acquisition Corp in February. A couple months later, Blockchain platform Chia Network in April submitted to the SEC a draft registration statement for a proposed IPO.&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;



Other companies have gone ahead this year. Bitcoin ATM operator Bitcoin Depot went public earlier this month after combining with SPAC <a href="https://www.globenewswire.com/Tracker?data=MBPabHr6KJN0S8HGxgw_5tY7yIAn7lRlfevkiNcMs8rxDDcY29MUgaEmddGl-3KCmqB1LUfd-y1aQ6Y2YSqMETk6EPcPCa3TeAwIFuBUEeQ=">GSR II Meteora Acquisition Corp</a>. The company’s stock price closed at $3.61 on its opening day of trading July 3.&nbsp;



The stock was trading $3.23 Monday at 12 pm ET, down about 5% on the day.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading">Mining stocks at a glance</h2>



After a rough 2022 for crypto, the mining sector has separated itself by improving productivity strategies and working within the current regulatory and infrastructure environment, Cannon noted.&nbsp;



Read more: <a href="https://blockworks.co/news/bitcoin-miners-ai-computing">Bitcoin miners seek revenue with AI, high-performance computing</a>&nbsp;



Crypto mining stock prices were collectively up 54% during the second quarter of 2023, according to an Architect Partners report.&nbsp;&nbsp;



By comparison, bitcoin (<a href="https://blockworks.co/price/btc">BTC</a>) and ether (<a href="https://blockworks.co/price/eth">ETH</a>) prices gained 83% and 18%, respectively, during the second quarter.&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;



“Innovation in electricity consumption and production not only benefits the bitcoin mining ecosystem, but other sectors like [artificial intelligence] and social media-related applications that require more heavy data capacity in the near term,” Cannon said.



Updated July 18, 2023 at 5:15 pm ET: A previous version of this article stated bitcoin mining rig developer Bitmain owned Bitdeer. Bitdeer is a spin-off of the company, but not owned by Bitmain.



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Bitcoin mining

As SPAC IPOs have grown scarce, Bitdeer’s success bucks a trend

Katherine Ross

Bitdeer is one step closer to becoming one of a handful of Special Purpose Acquisition Companies (SPAC) to go public in 2023. The deal is valued at $1.18 billion, after being valued at $4 billion when first announced. 



After three delays, the company will begin trading under the ticker symbol BTDR on Friday. The company originally planned to go public in November 2021, around the time when SPAC hype was at an all-time high.&nbsp;



So far in 2023, only six companies have filed for IPOs, with 11 still searching according to data from <a href="https://www.spacinsider.com/data/stats">SPACInsider</a>. In 2021, 129 SPACs hit the market.&nbsp;



The mining company will merge with a Hong Kong-based blank check company called Blue Safari Group Acquisition. Blank check companies go public to raise money and have no set business plans, with the aim of looking for a company to acquire or merge with.&nbsp;



Bitdeer, which is headquartered in Singapore, has five mining facilities operating globally. Similarly to competing mining companies <a href="https://blockworks.co/tag/riot-blockchain" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Riot</a> and <a href="https://blockworks.co/tag/marathon-digital" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Marathon</a>, it also has a Texas mining facility. The company had an aggregate megawatt capacity of 775, according to SEC <a href="https://www.sec.gov/Archives/edgar/data/1853084/000110465923044040/tm2311979d1_ex99-1.htm">documents</a>.&nbsp;



According to Riot’s <a href="https://www.riotplatforms.com/">website</a>, its Rockdale facility has a capacity of 750 megawatts. It announced last year that it would be <a href="https://www.riotplatforms.com/investors/news-events/press-releases/detail/127/riot-blockchain-announces-1-gw-development-in-navarro">expanding</a> to give the company “1.7 gigawatts of total developed capacity.”



Marathon obtained a <a href="https://ir.marathondh.com/news-events/press-releases/detail/1299/marathon-digital-holdings-announces-bitcoin-production-and">capacity</a> of over 300 megawatts after it entered into a hosting arrangement with Applied Blockchain in July 2022.&nbsp;



“We are already a leading hash rate supplier, and our public listing will allow us to make even greater contributions to the crypto economy. Looking ahead, we are well-positioned to generate sustainable value as we execute on our long-term business strategy,” Bitdeer CEO Linghui Kong said in the 8-K filed with the SEC.&nbsp;



With its Nasdaq listing, Bitdeer will join Riot and Marathon — both have previously gone public on the tech-focused exchange.



Bitdeer is a spin-off of Bitmain — an at times controversial China-based mining chip manufacturer which recently was reportedly <a href="https://finance.sina.cn/7x24/2023-04-11/detail-imypyieu4370634.d.html">fined</a> more than 24 million yuan for tax violations.



Updated April 13, 2022 at 10:54 am ET: The deal is now worth $1.18 billion after being valued at $4 billion initially.



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Bitdeer Closes in on SPAC Deal in Tricky Market

Sebastian Sinclair

Block.one’s crypto exchange Bullish won’t be going public after all.&nbsp;



Its $9 billion merger with a SPAC has been terminated just four months after courts rejected its $27.5 million settlement in a class action lawsuit, which alleged its EOS initial coin offering constituted an unregistered securities sale.



Under a mutual agreement disclosed <a href="https://bullish.com/news/press-releases/far-peak-acquisition-corporation-and-bullish-announce-the-termination-of-proposed-business-combination/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Thursday</a>, Far Peak Acquisition Corp and Bullish said they’d be walking from the deal as the firm’s SEC Form-4 registration statement hadn’t yet been declared effective.



Form-4s are required to register securities issued by parties outside the US and are filed in support of mergers, tender offers and the like. Bullish is registered to the Cayman Islands, while Far Peak is in the US.



Far Peak and Bullish entered into a business combination agreement last year that would have taken the exchange public on the <a href="https://bullish.com/news/press-releases/bullish-announces-intent-to-go-public-on-new-york-stock-exchange/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">New York Stock Exchange</a>.&nbsp;



Both parties had the right to step away if the deal hadn’t been formalized by the end of the year. The SPAC said it doesn’t intend to seek a new merger partner and would wind up operations by March 7 of next year — ending 18 months of deliberations between the pair.&nbsp;



Had Bullish gone public in the US, it would’ve been only the second pureplay crypto exchange to do so, following Coinbase’s direct listing last April.



“Our quest to become a public company is taking longer than expected, but we respect the SEC’s ongoing work to lay new digital asset frameworks and clarify industry-specific disclosure and accounting complexities,” said Brendan Blumer, CEO at both Bullish and EOS developer Block.one.



Bullish is <a href="https://bullish.com/news/press-releases/far-peak-acquisition-corporation-and-bullish-announce-the-termination-of-proposed-business-combination/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">backed</a> by Peter Thiel’s Thiel Capital and Founders Fund, alongside Christian Angermayer and Alan Howard, among others.&nbsp;



<h3 class="wp-block-heading">Block.one SEC settlement lingers</h3>



Still, ending the deal comes after a US court threw out a <a href="https://www.forbes.com/sites/emilymason/2022/08/17/federal-court-rejects-275-million-settlement-in-blockone-ico-case-questions-reach-of-securities-law/?sh=c9e501e2bda6" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">proposed</a> $27.5 million class action settlement between Block.one and EOS investors in August.&nbsp;



The court raised concerns over how the proceeds were to be divided between global and US-based plaintiffs, considering the case focused on US securities law.



Block.one separately settled with the SEC for $24 million in 2019 over allegations its $4.1 billion EOS initial coin offering was an unregistered securities sale. Block.one paid up without admitting to or denying the charges.&nbsp;



The tossed settlement could have implications for how the SEC approaches securities cases moving forward, especially with regard to international investors.



In any case, the scuppering apparently couldn’t have come at a worse time for a crypto exchange seeking to go public in the US.



David Canellis contributed reporting.



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Bullish

Block.one Cans $9B SPAC Merger 4 Months After Scrapped EOS Settlement

Casey Wagner

In a “mutual decision,” Circle and its planned special purpose acquisition company (SPAC) partner Concord have pulled the plug on plans to go public, the companies said Monday.&nbsp;



The SEC had not granted Circle and Concord approval to move forward. The approval process, while lengthy, is essential, according to Circle CEO Jeremy Allaire. Concord tapped its SPAC division, Concord Acquisition Corp., for the deal.&nbsp;



“From my perspective, I believe that the SEC has been rigorous and thorough in understanding our business and many novel aspects of this industry,” Allaire wrote in a <a href="https://twitter.com/jerallaire/status/1599755838566338560?s=20&amp;t=FPRkU_goqGA8VH5lz3a5Ag" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">tweet</a> Monday. “This kind of review is necessary to ultimately provide trust, transparency and accountability for major companies in crypto.”



Circle, which first revealed its SPAC ambitions in July 2021, delayed its plans twice — before canceling them all together. The most recent deferral came just last month, when the stablecoin issuer said the deal would be pushed to January 2023, according to an <a href="https://www.sec.gov/Archives/edgar/data/1824301/000121390022066194/ea167444-pre14a_concord.htm" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">SEC filing</a>.&nbsp;



“We are disappointed the proposed transaction timed out, however, becoming a public company remains part of Circle&#8217;s core strategy to enhance trust and transparency, which has never been more important,&#8221; Allaire said in a <a href="https://www.prnewswire.com/news-releases/circle-and-concord-acquisition-corp-mutually-agree-to-terminate-proposed-business-combination-301694560.html?tc=eml_cleartime" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">statement</a>.



Circle is now profitable, closing the third quarter of 2023 with a net income of $43 million — the “best financial position” the company has ever been in, Allaire said.&nbsp;



The delay comes as stablecoins continue to <a href="https://blockworks.co/news/stablecoin-regulation-ramps-up-across-the-globe-with-new-bis-guidance" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">attract interest</a> from regulators, although the recent blow-up of <a href="https://blockworks.co/news/bankman-fried-puts-off-house-testimony-on-ftx" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">offshore exchange FTX</a> has dominated the conversation around crypto rules in recent weeks.&nbsp;



“The recent market disruptions, while costly for many, were not systemic events,” Jon Cunliffe, chair of the CPMI and deputy governor for financial stability at the Bank of England, said in a July <a href="https://www.bis.org/press/p220713.htm" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">statement</a>, presumably referring to the depegging of algorithmic stablecoin UST in May.



“Such events could become systemic in the future, especially given the strong growth in these markets and the increasing linkages between crypto assets and with traditional finance,” Cunliffe added.



Showing proof of reserves — likely to be a key component of any stablecoin legislation that is passed in the US — is a transparency move Circle has leaned into. The issuer released its first monthly report for USDC reserve assets in 2018. 



Learn more: <a href="https://blockworks.co/news/what-are-proof-of-reserves-and-can-they-build-back-trust" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">What Is Proof of Reserves and Can It Build Back Trust?</a>



“As policy and regulatory requirements evolve and as better reporting opportunities arise, we intend to adjust our approach and continue to enhance transparency into our operations to give the market even more confidence,” the company <a href="https://www.circle.com/blog/new-levels-of-detail-in-the-monthly-usdc-attestation" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">said</a> at the time.



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Circle

In Post-FTX World, Circle Kills SPAC Plans

<div id="highlights-block_62b2864530b80" class="highlights">
 <ul>
 <li>Roxe issues its own private tokens to facilitate money transfers and remittances across 113 countries</li>
 <li>Despite waning interest in crypto from investors, SPAC deals continue to provide a means for private crypto and blockchain firms to go public</li>
 </ul>
 
</div>



Blockchain-based payments firm Roxe Holding said Tuesday it had entered into an agreement to merge with blank check company Goldenstone Acquisition in an estimated combined enterprise deal worth $3.6 billion.



The merger, following approval by Roxe&#8217;s and Goldenstone&#8217;s shareholders, will result in Roxe becoming a publicly-traded company on the Nasdaq Stock Market, according to a statement.



Special purpose acquisition companies (SPAC), or &#8220;blank check&#8221; companies, are entities with no commercial operations that obtain an initial public offering for the purpose of merging with private companies to take them public.



A merger of this size continues to fly in the face of a declining crypto market and waning interest from investors over a lack of returns generated by these types of vehicles. 



Still, many SPAC deals, including Circle&#8217;s intentions to go public with a $9 billion enterprise valuation, announced in February, offer a practical solution for blockchain and crypto firms seeking a listing on major traditional exchanges.



Goldenstone will be renamed “Roxe Holding Group Inc.” Roxe stockholders are expected to roll 100% of their equity into the combined company.



Roxe is a blockchain infrastructure company whose blockchain is based on a permissioned hybrid model supporting a range of assets including digital fiat, central bank digital currency, stablecoins, gift cards, gaming tokens, loyalty points and stocks, according to its <a href="https://roxe.io/about-us" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">website</a>.



Because of the permissioned model, Roxe does not interact with existing cryptocurrencies such as bitcoin or ether and instead issues its own private tokens to facilitate money transfers and remittances across 113 countries.



&#8220;Roxe is a leading blockchain-based open payments network and we strongly believe in the…opportunity for blockchain to transform payments,&#8221; Goldenstone&#8217;s CEO Eddie Ni said in the statement. &#8220;We believe that Roxe&#8217;s adherence to a compliant, robust strategy will make it a winner in this track.&#8221;



The deal is expected to close in the first quarter of next year.



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