In a recent announcement on January 3rd, MARA (formerly known as Marathon Digital), a leading mining company, revealed that it had lent out 7,377 Bitcoins to third-party entities in 2024. This development comes amidst the company’s efforts to generate additional income streams to offset operating expenses incurred by its mining activities.
MARA’s Bitcoin Lending Program: A Key Revenue Stream
According to Vice President of Investor Relations Robert Samuels, MARA’s Bitcoin lending program focuses on short-term arrangements with well-established third parties. The program has been active throughout 2024 and generates a modest single-digit yield. This revenue-generating initiative is designed to provide an additional source of income for the company, thereby helping to offset the costs associated with its mining operations.
The Purpose of MARA’s Bitcoin Lending Program
In a bid to shed more light on the purpose behind MARA’s Bitcoin lending program, Robert Samuels provided further insight into the initiative. According to him, the primary objective of the program is to generate income that can help offset operating expenses incurred by the company’s mining activities. Mining is an energy-intensive business with inherent challenges due to factors such as reduced block subsidies every four years during the Bitcoin halving.
The Impact of the Bitcoin Halving
The Bitcoin halving, which occurred in April 2024, resulted in a reduction of the block reward from 6.25 BTC to 3.125 BTC per block mined. This decrease in block reward is a significant factor affecting the mining industry, as it reduces the revenue generated by miners for each block they successfully mine.
MARA’s Bitcoin Holdings Breakdown
As of 2024, MARA’s total Bitcoin holdings stand at 44,893 BTC. This figure includes:
- 22,065 Bitcoins acquired in 2024: The company acquired these coins at an average price of $87,205 per coin.
- 9,457 additional Bitcoins mined in 2024: These coins were mined by MARA’s mining operations.
MARA’s Recent Milestones
In December 2024, MARA became the first publicly traded mining company to achieve a computing power milestone of 50 exahashes per second (EH/s). As of January 3rd, the company’s energized hashrate stands at 53.2 EH/s.
Raising Capital through Convertible Note Offerings
In November and December 2024, MARA raised $1.9 billion in capital through two senior convertible note offerings. These offerings featured zero-interest coupons, with the first offering maturing in 2030 and the second one maturing in 2031.
MARA’s Pursuit of Bitcoin as a Treasury Reserve Asset
MicroStrategy co-founder Michael Saylor has recently praised MARA’s pursuit of Bitcoin as a treasury reserve asset. Saylor expects MARA to be the next Bitcoin company to join the Nasdaq 100 stock market index.
Important Considerations for Investors
This article does not contain investment advice or recommendations. Every investment and trading move involves risk, and readers should conduct their own research when making a decision.
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