Argo Blockchain shares soar after sale of Texas mining facility to Galaxy Digital

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The share price of London-based bitcoin miner Argo Blockchain PLCs soared more than 100% during UK trading hours on Wednesday and closed up 73.33% on the London Stock Exchange after the company announced that it would sell its Texas-based Helios facility to Galaxy Digital Holdings Ltd, a financial services and investment management firm run by billionaire investor Mike Novogratz.

See related article: Bitcoin Hashrate Drops Nearly 40% as Deadly US Storm Unplugs Miners

Fast facts

The deal, worth $65 million, does not include Argos cryptocurrency machines that the company will continue to operate at Helios, he said.

About 24,000 of the mining machines will serve as collateral for a US$35 million loan from Galaxy to Argo under the deal.

The funds secured from the sale and the loan will help Argo avoid bankruptcy and pay off about $85 million in debt and fees on its balance, the company said.

The Bitcoin miner estimates that the deal will reduce the company’s net debt by around US$41 million. While the selloff sent Argos shares soaring on Wednesday, they have fallen more than 90% in the past year.

On Tuesday, Argo requested a trading halt on its Nasdaq-listed shares.

The crypto mining industry has been hit hard this year by rising energy costs and falling Bitcoin prices.

Bitcoin’s mining hashrate, the level of computing power used for mining and processing transactions, fell nearly 40% earlier this week as deadly blizzard conditions in the United States forced miners to close their facilities.

Last week, British Columbia, Canada suspended new power connections for crypto miners, and one of the largest publicly traded crypto mining companies, Core Scientific, filed for bankruptcy.

See related article: Bankrupt Miner Core Scientific May Sell Facilities Under Development: Report

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