Speculation of CleanSpark Takeover Boosts GRIID Shares by 80%

The stock of U.S. bitcoin mining firm GRIID surged 80% on Thursday, fueled by speculation that it might be acquired by rival CleanSpark. GRIID’s stock price jumped to $1 from its previous close of $0.56, amid a significant increase in trading volume. During pre-market hours, over 30 million shares of GRIID traded hands, a dramatic rise from its average volume, according to TheMinerMag.

Mike Alfred, managing partner at Alpine Fox and a non-executive director at Iris Energy, hinted on Wednesday that a CleanSpark acquisition of GRIID seemed highly likely. His speculation was based on numerous discussions and inferences.

GRIID went public earlier this year following a SPAC merger initially announced in 2021. The merger faced several delays due to the bear market in 2022. According to GRIID’s Q1 report, the company had 68 MW of available capacity, with 48 MW allocated for proprietary mining. However, it only mined 66 BTC in Q1, with a realized hashrate of 0.41 EH/s. This low output suggests GRIID was either using outdated mining equipment or not operating at full capacity.

In June 2023, GRIID reported the installation of over 20,623 miners, producing a hashrate of 0.47 EH/s. This indicates the company’s fleet mainly consisted of older-generation miners with an average hashrate of 21 TH/s per miner.

The rumor of CleanSpark’s acquisition comes as the bitcoin mining industry seeks consolidation amid fluctuating market conditions. CleanSpark’s potential acquisition of GRIID could streamline operations and enhance CleanSpark’s mining capacity. The speculation has significantly impacted GRIID’s market performance, demonstrating investor optimism about the potential deal and its future implications for the company.