
MARA shares slide after $1.5B Bitcoin sales
MARA Holdings shares fell after the Bitcoin miner disclosed a $1.26 billion first-quarter net loss and confirmed it sold nearly $1.5 billion worth of Bitcoin during the period.
The company sold 20,880 Bitcoin in the quarter, including 15,133 Bitcoin sold between March 4 and March 25 for about $1 billion, with most proceeds used to repurchase convertible notes and reduce debt.
Revenue declined 18% year-on-year to $175 million as weaker Bitcoin prices weighed on results, while MARA’s remaining holdings of 35,303 Bitcoin were valued at roughly $2.84 billion, keeping the company among the world’s largest corporate Bitcoin holders.
MARA said around $1 billion from the Bitcoin sales reduced its convertible debt burden from $3.3 billion to $2.3 billion, generating a $71 million gain from debt extinguishment and improving its balance sheet position.
The company also confirmed it would move away from aggressive Bitcoin mining expansion by limiting future ASIC hardware purchases while repurposing approximately 90% of its non-hosted mining capacity toward AI and IT infrastructure operations.
MARA’s largest strategic move was its roughly $1.5 billion acquisition of Long Ridge Energy from FTAI Infrastructure, which includes a 505-megawatt gas-fired power plant in Ohio and is projected to generate $144 million in annualised EBITDA.
The company is also cutting 15% of its workforce in a restructuring expected to save $12 million annually, while MARA shares closed down about 5% on Tuesday despite remaining roughly 30% higher over the past month.
At the time of reporting, Bitcoin price was $79,410.46.