- Nevada-based mining firm, Marathon Patent Group has purchased $150 million in Bitcoin
- The firm purchased more than 4,812 Bitcoin (BTC) through the New York Digital Investment Group and will hold it as a reserve asset
- Marathon Patent Group wants to become a “pure-play bitcoin investment option” for Wall Street
The Nasdaq-listed mining firm, Marathon Patent Group, has announced a purchase of Bitcoin worth $150 million. The firm joins the likes of Grayscale, Massmutual, MicroStrategy, Fidelity Investments, Ruffer Investment, and Guggenheim Partners LLC as institutional investors to throw their weight behind Bitcoin.
Marathon Patent Group Purchases Bitcoin Worth $150 Million
Nevada-based cryptocurrency mining firm, Marathon Patent Group (MARA), has announced that it has purchased Bitcoins worth $150 million and will hold it as a reserve asset.
According to the announcement, the mining firm purchased more than 4,812 Bitcoin at an average price of $31,168 per coin through the New York Digital Investment Group.
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Merrick Okamoto, the Chairman, and CEO of Marathon explained that the purchase is considered a better long-term strategy than holding the US Dollars.
Okamoto further explains that:
By purchasing $150 million worth of Bitcoin, we have accelerated the process of building Marathon into what we believe to be the de facto investment choice for individuals and institutions who are seeking exposure to this new asset class.
Marathon was rather fortunate to have bought at a dip, as its Bitcoin purchase came just before the coin rose back above $34,000. As of the time of this writing, Bitcoin currently exchanges hands at around $32,000 a coin, dropping by over 5.4 percent in the last 24 hours.
On the Flipside
- Publicly traded Bitcoin mining firm Hut 8, has taken another approach to crypto investment
- Hut 8 has announced the completion of $11.8 million in financing for the purchase of 5,400 machines from MicroBT
- The delivery of 5,400 Whatsminer M30S machines has been scheduled to start before February and continue through June
Marathon Patent Group to Become a Pure-Play Bitcoin Investment Option
While Marathon isn’t the first crypto mining firm to get involved with cryptocurrencies, it is one of the first to do so through a direct investment model.
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Mining firms like Riot Blockchain and Hut 8 also hold bitcoin in their reserves. However, those larger miners amassed their gigantic portfolio by mining and holding, not through direct purchase.
As the bitcoin mining industry evolves through what Okamoto described as an “arms race” for new rigs, Marathon is racing behind to catch up by providing more mining machines with more mining power for potentially more bitcoin.
The company had raised a total of $450 million in January 2020, and according to Okamoto, the capital infusions will be used to fund the expansion of the Marathon.
Knowing the mining firm would not be able to catch up with larger mining companies any time soon, Marathon Patent Group has moved instead to invest in Bitcoin now, as it aims to become the largest “pure-play bitcoin investment options.”
