Cryptocurrency

In February, the company mined 364 bitcoin, marking a 16% increase from the previous month. This growth is attributed to the full deployment of Building 3 at its Lake Mariner facility. The average operating hashrate saw a month-over-month increase of 39% to 7.5 EH/s. The power cost for mining averaged $13,968 per bitcoin, or about $0.037 per kilowatt-hour, excluding potential proceeds from demand response or ancillary services.The increase in mining capacity is partly due to the acquisition of roughly 4,000 Bitmain S19k Pro miners in February, some of which are intended to replace approximately 2,000 MinerVa miners at Lake Mariner. The construction of Building 4, with a capacity of 35 MW, at the Lake Mariner facility is advancing and is expected to complete by mid-2024.TeraWulf operates two bitcoin mining facilities in the United States, the wholly-owned Lake Mariner facility in New York and the Nautilus Cryptomine facility in Pennsylvania, a joint venture with Cumulus Coin, LLC. The company emphasizes its commitment to zero-carbon energy, with its operations powered by more than 95% zero-carbon energy sources, including nuclear, hydro, and solar.The press release also mentioned that TeraWulf is pursuing a potential large-scale, high-performance computing (HPC) project at the Lake Mariner site, with an initial 2 MW block of power allocated for thousands of the latest generation graphics processing units (GPUs).This operational update is based on unaudited figures and remains subject to standard month-end adjustments. The company’s share of earnings or losses from the Nautilus Cryptomine facility is reflected within equity in net income or loss of investee, net of tax, and not in revenue, cost of revenue, or cost of operations lines in TeraWulf’s consolidated statements of operations.This article was generated with the support of AI and reviewed by an editor. For more information see our T&C. More

LONDON/SINGAPORE (Reuters) -Bitcoin rallied to a two-year high on Monday, breaking above $65,000 as a wave of money carried it within striking distance of record levels.The price hit a session high of $65,537 early in Europe, having already hit a new two-year high in Asian trading. It was last up 4% at $65,045. Bitcoin hit a record $68,999.99 in November 2021.The largest cryptocurrency by market value has gained 50% this year and most of the rise come in the last few weeks where inflows into U.S.-listed bitcoin funds have surged.Spot bitcoin exchange-traded funds were approved in the United States earlier this year. Their launch opened the way for new large investors and has re-ignited enthusiasm and momentum reminiscent of the run up to record levels in 2021.”The flows are not drying up as investors feel more confident the higher price appears to go,” said Markus Thielen, head of research at crypto analytics house 10x Research in Singapore.Net flows into the 10 largest U.S. spot bitcoin funds reached $2.17 billion in the week to Mar 1, with more than half of that going into BlackRock (NYSE:BLK)’s iShares Bitcoin Trust, according to LSEG data.Smaller rival ether has hitched a ride on speculation that it too may soon have exchange-traded funds driving inflows. It’s up 50% year-to-date and by Monday was trading at two-year highs, up 2.6% on the day at $3,518.The rally has come in tandem with records tumbling on stock indexes from Japan’s Nikkei to the S&P 500 and tech-heavy Nasdaq and with volatility gauges in equities and foreign exchange turning lower.”In a world where Nasdaq is making new all-time highs, crypto is going to perform well as bitcoin remains a high-volatility tech proxy and liquidity thermometer,” said Brent Donnelly, trader and president at analysis firm Spectra Markets. “We are back to a 2021-style market where everything goes up and everyone is having fun.” More

By 04:25 ET (09:25 GMT), the token had risen by 5.7% to $65,015.60. In earlier trading in Asia, Bitcoin had jumped to $64,285, its highest since 2021. So far this year, the digital asset has gained more than 50% in market value.Crypto-exposed stocks, which have been beneficiaries of the recent rally in Bitcoin, drove higher in premarket trading on Wall Street. Top U.S. crypto exchange Coinbase Global (NASDAQ:COIN), as well as crypto miners Marathon Digital (NASDAQ:MARA), Riot Platforms (NASDAQ:RIOT) and CleanSpark (NASDAQ:CLSK), all gained prior to the opening bell in New York.Bitcoin’s stellar performance in 2024 has been spurred on in part by the recent U.S. approval of ETFs that directly track the price of the cryptocurrency. The approvals have sparked a sharp uptick in institutional capital into the token.Ethereum, a key peer to Bitcoin, has been boosted by hopes that it too may soon have ETFs following its price. It had risen by 3.9% to $3,520.90 on Monday, hovering around two-year highs notched last week. More

The move upwards pushed Cardano’s market cap up to $27.9940B, or 1.17% of the total cryptocurrency market cap. At its highest, Cardano’s market cap was $94.8001B.Cardano had traded in a range of $0.7236 to $0.7928 in the previous twenty-four hours.Over the past seven days, Cardano has seen a rise in value, as it gained 33.68%. The volume of Cardano traded in the twenty-four hours to time of writing was $1.2410B or 1.11% of the total volume of all cryptocurrencies. It has traded in a range of $0.5983 to $0.7928 in the past 7 days.At its current price, Cardano is still down 74.42% from its all-time high of $3.10 set on September 2, 2021.Bitcoin was last at $63,627.9 on the Investing.com Index, up 2.84% on the day.Ethereum was trading at $3,470.23 on the Investing.com Index, a gain of 1.68%.Bitcoin’s market cap was last at $1,251.0564B or 52.27% of the total cryptocurrency market cap, while Ethereum’s market cap totaled $417.2733B or 17.43% of the total cryptocurrency market value. More

NEW YORK (Reuters) – Crypto is back! And it’s not just in the markets.The burgeoning cryptocurrency industry is jumping into the 2024 U.S. election, spending millions of dollars in Super Tuesday primary contests in California, Alabama and Texas to boost crypto-friendly candidates and defeat those pushing for more regulation. How these candidates perform on Tuesday, when dozens of races across America are whittled down to two contestants, will indicate how much influence the increasingly wealthy crypto executives may wield in November. Brand new industry super PACs, or independent fundraising groups, Fairshake, Protect Progress and Defend American Jobs, backed by funds from Coinbase (NASDAQ:COIN) and the Winklevoss twins have spent at least $13 million in Tuesday’s primary races, according to a Reuters analysis of data from OpenSecrets, a research group that tracks money in U.S. politics and its influence on elections and policy.And that’s just the beginning, officials say. “The crypto community is playing politics to win,” said Fairshake spokesperson Josh Vlasto. “We will have influence and impact in races behind candidates who align with our agenda and our vision.”In total, the three super PACs have raised nearly $102 million from January 2023 to January 2024, data from the Federal Election Commission showed. The cryptocurrency industry has surged in recent months, and Bitcoin hit a new high last week, after the collapse of several big players in 2022 crushed prices and prompted a regulatory crackdown. The industry, including its employees and political action committees, has so far contributed about $59.2 million toward the 2024 election cycle, up from $26.8 million in the 2022 midterm cycle and $1.6 million in the 2020 cycle, OpenSecrets data showed.California progressive Democrat Katie Porter, who is running for Senate, is a key target. Fairshake has spent over $10 million to try to convince voters not to back Porter, including launching a statewide TV and digital media buy.Porter joined U.S. Senator Elizabeth Warren in 2022, seeking information from Texas’ electric grid operator on cryptomining operations in the state and how the power the industry uses affects climate change and the energy grid.”This shady super PAC is spending more than $10 million to kick Katie out of Washington because they know she will stand up for Californians and take on powerful special interests like them in the Senate,” said Porter’s campaign spokesperson Lindsay (NYSE:LNN) Reilly. Protect Progress has also spent about $1.7 million to back Shomari Figures, a Democrat and former deputy chief of staff to U.S. attorney general Merrick Garland running in Alabama’s 2nd congressional district race. A Democrat is expected to win the hotly-contested race, which was sparked after a federal court ordered Alabama to draw a new Congressional map. Figures, if elected, has pledged to “embrace the new landscape around digital assets, like Cryptocurrency, to stimulate innovation and technological advancement,” his website says. In Texas, Protect Progress has put about $962,000 in support of Representative Julie Johnson, a Democrat running in the state’s 32nd congressional district race. Meanwhile, Defend American Jobs has allocated over $1 million to back Representative John Bradford III and Representative Tim Moore, both Republicans in North Carolina, OpenSecrets data showed. Moore is the speaker of the state’s House.Democrats are favored to take control of the House of Representatives in the 2024 election, perhaps by a slim margin, meaning individual Congress members could play pivotal roles in passing legislation. “You have candidates in all of those races who have demonstrated not only an openness to learning and thinking more about digital assets, but actually calling on Congress and on policymakers to take action there,” said Kara Calvert, head of U.S. policy at Coinbase.Coinbase, an online platform for buying and selling crypto, is also behind a non-profit group called the Stand With Crypto Alliance that now counts 315,000 members, which aims to organize voters who own crypto and influence public opinion.The industry’s interest in the 2024 election comes on the heels of one of the biggest financial frauds on record. FTX founder Sam Bankman-Fried was found guilty last year of stealing from customers. Prosecutors allege he used those funds to donate more than $100 million to U.S. political campaigns.Federal election disclosures show he gave roughly $40 million to mostly Democratic-aligned groups and campaigns.An indictment also accused Bankman-Fried of directing two FTX executives to evade contribution limits by donating to Democrats and Republicans to the tune of $9.7 million to Democratic candidates and causes, and more than $24 million to Republican candidates and causes in 2022.At least some have returned the money after. “The experience of FTX/Alameda should be a cautionary tale” for any campaign, said Ciara Torres-Spelliscy, a professor of law at Stetson University College of Law. Alameda Research was Bankman-Fried’s crypto-focused hedge fund.”The FTX/Alameda funds that went into politics are subject to two different attempts to claw back the money: One claw back from the bankruptcy estate of FTX and another claw back from federal prosecutors who consider the money fruits of a crime.”  More

This expansion in hashrate has corresponded with a 12% increase in bitcoin production compared to the previous month, with CleanSpark mining approximately 648 bitcoins. As a result, the company’s bitcoin treasury has grown to 4,218 bitcoins. Despite the increase in mining output, CleanSpark sold only 2.8 bitcoins in February, translating to proceeds of around $140,000 based on the average selling price of approximately $50,000 per bitcoin.CleanSpark attributes the growth in hashrate to the deployment of a larger mining fleet, which now includes over 131,000 operational miners. The company’s efficiency also improved, with its month-end fleet efficiency recorded at 24.68 joules per terahash (J/Th).The company’s operational update highlighted the progress of its recent acquisitions in Mississippi, where crews have nearly completed setting up servers in the newly acquired data centers. These facilities are close to full operation with a current hashrate of about 1.5 EH/s, expected to rise to 2.4 EH/s. Additionally, CleanSpark’s property acquisition in Dalton is advancing on schedule, with an operational target set for April 2024 and an anticipated hashrate of 0.8 EH/s.The information in this article is based on a press release statement from CleanSpark Inc.CleanSpark Inc. (NASDAQ:CLSK) has demonstrated impressive operational advancements in its bitcoin mining capacity, as reflected in the latest hashrate and production figures. These operational successes are also echoed in the company’s financial data and market performance. According to InvestingPro, CleanSpark’s market capitalization stands at $3.31 billion USD, indicating a robust valuation in the market.The company’s revenue growth over the last twelve months as of Q1 2024 is particularly noteworthy, with a substantial increase of 75.4%, showcasing CleanSpark’s ability to scale its operations effectively. This growth is further emphasized by the quarterly revenue growth figure, which is an astonishing 165.24% for Q1 2024. Such metrics highlight the company’s rapid expansion and might be of interest to investors looking for high-growth opportunities in the tech sector.Despite the lack of profitability in the last twelve months, as indicated by a negative P/E ratio of -43.77, CleanSpark’s stock has experienced a strong return over the last year, with a 1 Year Price Total Return of 548.06%. This suggests that investors are optimistic about the company’s future prospects and are willing to invest in its growth potential. The InvestingPro Tips further reveal that analysts anticipate sales growth in the current year, which may continue to fuel investor confidence.For investors seeking more in-depth analysis, there are additional InvestingPro Tips available, which provide insights such as the company’s liquidity position and debt levels. CleanSpark operates with a moderate level of debt and its liquid assets exceed short-term obligations, suggesting a stable financial footing. With 15 more InvestingPro Tips ready to explore, investors can use the coupon code PRONEWS24 to get an additional 10% off a yearly or biyearly Pro and Pro+ subscription and gain access to these valuable insights.As CleanSpark continues to expand its operations and solidify its presence in the sustainable bitcoin mining industry, these InvestingPro data metrics and tips could offer investors a more comprehensive understanding of the company’s financial health and market position.This article was generated with the support of AI and reviewed by an editor. For more information see our T&C. More

Leveraging its extensive history of cultivating customer relationships for mining machine purchases and collaborating with energy partners who possess vast energy reserves, AGM Group is poised to extend its reach into the mining industry. The company’s expansion strategy is multifaceted, encompassing self-constructed projects, joint mining ventures, and strategic acquisitions. AGM Group is committed to establishing and operating Bitcoin mining data centers, coupled with offering hosting services, in strategically chosen locations including the United States, Canada, and Central Asia. This initiative represents a significant step forward in AGM Group’s journey towards becoming a leader in the global mining sector.Mr. Zhu Bo, Chairman and Chief Executive Officer of AGM Group, shared his excitement about the company’s prospects, stating, “We are currently in the early stages of negotiations with energy providers and bitcoin mining farms that possess established mining sites already utilized by clients, in addition to discussions with our customers who are in immediate need of mining hosting services. We anticipate sharing further details shortly. Our initial phase targets include managing up to 200MW of data centers worldwide, aiming for a hash rate of up to 5 EH/s, and deploying over 50,000 mining machines by the end of 2024.”He added: “AGMH is set to become a pivotal force in the mining industry, serving as a critical link between two essential domains. On one side, our profound expertise and industry experience place us in an optimal position to understand and fulfill the demands of hosting customers. On the other side, we stand unique with partners who are energy sources but may lack the experience in establishing hosting facilities or accessing potential customers. AGM is poised to bridge this gap, providing necessary expertise and customer access. This strategic enhancement is not just an evolution—it’s a transformative step forward in our mission for global expansion, underlining our commitment to innovating within the mining sector and beyond. We firmly believe that this strategy upgrading will position our company with a more comprehensive business structure, drive accelerated growth, and deliver enhanced value returns to our shareholders.” More

Amid this upward trajectory, analysts at Bernstein highlighted an interesting trend – the underperformance of Bitcoin mining stocks compared to cryptocurrency’s performance. In the past 120 days, following the increased likelihood of ETF approvals, and especially since the launch of ETFs on January 10, Bitcoin mining companies have seen their stock values outpace the gains of Bitcoin. Specifically, Cleanspark (NASDAQ:CLSK) and Marathon Digital (NASDAQ:MARA) have experienced surges of approximately 380% and 250%, respectively, compared to a 70% increase in BTC’s price during the same period.However, amidst Bitcoin’s surge above $60,000 on Wednesday, this trend did not persist. Notably, the flagship crypto asset rose 6% on the day, notably ahead of miners like Riot Platforms (NASDAQ:RIOT) and CLSK, which fell 7.5% and 10%, respectively. Analysts observe that Bitcoin on violent rallies like today sucks away liquidity from the mining stocks. Retail traders end up chasing Bitcoin on days like today, versus mining stocks,” they wrote.They expect Bitcoin miners to be higher beta over at least a reasonable time frame i.e at least a micro BTC cycle e.g the Pre ETF rally, post ETF rally or across the entire BTC cycle which typically would last for 18-24 months. Higher beta is not on a daily basis,” they added. More