Bitdeer Liquidates All Bitcoin Holdings, Raises $325M

Singapore-based Bitcoin mining company Bitdeer Technologies Group reported on February 20 that it had liquidated its entire corporate Bitcoin treasury, reducing holdings to zero excluding customer deposits. The firm sold all 189.8 Bitcoin it mined during the previous week, along with an additional 943.1 Bitcoin from its reserves, marking a complete depletion from about 2,000 Bitcoin at the end of the previous year.

The rapid sell-off reflects mounting pressures in the Bitcoin mining sector. Network difficulty increased by 14.7 percent in the latest adjustment, the largest jump since May 2021, following a temporary dip caused by U.S. winter storms that disrupted operations. This surge has driven mining profitability to near-record lows, with hashprice falling below $30 per petahash per day. Bitdeer's gross margin for the fourth quarter dropped to 4.7 percent from 7.4 percent a year earlier, making it challenging to maintain Bitcoin reserves amid rising production costs.

To address these challenges and fund expansion, Bitdeer announced a $325 million private placement of convertible senior notes on the same day, with an option for an additional $50 million. The notes, set to close...