:max_bytes(150000):strip_icc()/GettyImages-2162391259-fb48ab97364341fd949c56b9c62788f7.jpg "Marathon Digital Buys $100 Million Worth of Bitcoin")
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Key Takeaways
- Bitcoin miner Marathon announced the purchase of $100 million worth of bitcoin.
- This takes the company’s bitcoin holdings to more than 20,000, worth roughly $1.3 billion.
- Marathon said it’s reverting to a strategy of holding all the bitcoin it mines on its balance sheet.
Marathon Digital (MARA) bought more bitcoin.
The bitcoin miner said Thursday that it recently purchased $100 million of the cryptocurrency on the open market, adding that it now owns over 20,000 bitcoin — worth roughly $1.3 billion on the open market — and intends to acquire more.
It also says it now plans to keep all the bitcoin it mines, which it called a “full HODL strategy.”
Marathon CFO Salman Khan explained that a recent dip in bitcoin prices, combined with the company’s strong financial position, provided an ideal opportunity to expand its holdings. The company had lately been selling bitcoin to cover operating expenses.
As of June 30, Marathon held $268 million in cash. The company is set to report its second-quarter earnings on August 1.
Marathon stock was recently up about 1%, with bitcoin down roughly 2% over the past 24 hours to a bit under $65,000, according to CoinDesk.
“We believe bitcoin is the world’s best treasury reserve asset and support the idea of sovereign wealth funds holding it,” said Marathon CEO Fred Thiel. “We encourage governments and corporations to all hold bitcoin as a reserve asset.”