MARA Holdings Launches MARA Foundation for Bitcoin Network

MARA Holdings, a leading publicly traded Bitcoin mining company, announced the launch of the MARA Foundation at the Bitcoin 2026 conference in Las Vegas. The nonprofit initiative aims to enhance the Bitcoin network's long-term health, security, and accessibility through funding for open-source development, education, research, and policy outreach.

CEO Fred Thiel introduced the foundation during the event, describing it as a strategic commitment beyond the company's mining operations. "The MARA Foundation represents MARA's strategic commitment to supporting the health of the Bitcoin network, outside of our responsibilities as miners alone," Thiel stated on social media. He emphasized Bitcoin's role as a decentralized public utility that requires shared stewardship from participants, including miners, developers, and users.

The foundation's priorities include hardening Bitcoin against emerging threats such as quantum computing, which officials described as a non-immediate but forward-looking risk requiring early preparation. Protocol upgrades, like post-quantum wallets and proposals such as BIP 360 co-authored by MARA market strategist Isabel Foxen Duke, will receive support. MARA...