Bitcoin News Today: Bitcoin Miners Turn Power Edge Into AI Advantage, Outpacing Hyperscalers With Debt-Fueled Expansions

Shares of IREN Limited (NASDAQ: IREN) and TeraWulf Inc. (NASDAQ: WULF) surged in pre-market trading after both companies announced major debt offerings to fund expansions in artificial intelligence (AI) and high-performance computing (HPC) infrastructure. IREN's stock rose 6% to $73, while WULF climbed 10% to $15.94, reflecting investor optimism about the firms' strategic shifts into the booming compute sector.

IREN, a vertically integrated data center operator, closed a $1.0 billion convertible notes offering in a private placement to qualified institutional buyers, with a 42.5% conversion premium and a fully exercised $125 million greenshoe. The net proceeds of approximately $979 million will support general corporate purposes and $56.7 million in capped call transactions to hedge dilution risk. The offering, oversubscribed and led by Citigroup and Goldman Sachs, underscores IREN's pivot to AI cloud services. The company has secured multi-year contracts for 23,000 NVIDIA GPUs, targeting over $500 million in annual recurring revenue by early 2026.

TeraWulf, meanwhile, announced a $3.2 billion senior secured notes offering due 2030 to finance its Lake Mariner data center expansion in New York. The notes, guaranteed by subsidiaries and secured by first-priority liens on assets, will be marketed under Rule 144A. Proceeds will fund the development of a hybrid campus for Bitcoin mining and AI colocation, with completion guarantees provided by TeraWulf. The offering includes a pledge of Google LLC warrants to purchase TeraWulf stock as collateral, highlighting the company's partnership with Fluidstack, an AI infrastructure provider backed by Google. Morgan Stanley is acting as sole bookrunner.

The debt deals align with a broader trend of Bitcoin miners repurposing infrastructure for AI demand. Bernstein analysts noted that miners' pre-secured power capacity gives them a competitive edge in AI hosting, as grid interconnection delays plague traditional hyperscalers. IREN and TeraWulf, with access to over 2.9 gigawatts of renewable energy, are positioning themselves to capitalize on surging demand for compute-intensive workloads.

IREN's CEO Daniel Roberts emphasized the company's dual strategy: leveraging its low-cost, green power for both Bitcoin mining and AI cloud services. "Our ability to rapidly transition from ASICs to GPUs and scale data centers demonstrates our unique positioning to meet accelerating demand for AI compute," he stated. TeraWulf's expansion also reflects this duality, with its Lake Mariner campus set to host Fluidstack's AI workloads alongside Bitcoin operations.

Market analysts remain divided on valuation risks. While Bernstein upgraded IREN to "Outperform" with a $75 price target, JPMorgan warned of potential overvaluation, citing high execution risks. Similarly, Rosenblatt raised TeraWulf's target to $14.50, citing AI-driven demand, but noted liquidity concerns given the company's current ratio of 0.66.

The moves have sparked retail and institutional enthusiasm. IREN's stock, up over 500% year-to-date, drew attention on social media platforms like Stocktwits, where sentiment remains "extremely bullish." TeraWulf's shares, which have gained 150% this year, also saw a surge in trading volume following the announcement.

As the AI and HPC sectors race to meet demand, IREN and TeraWulf's debt-fueled expansions highlight the growing intersection of cryptocurrency infrastructure and next-generation computing. With Microsoft and other hyperscalers facing multi-year grid delays, Bitcoin miners' early investments in power and cooling infrastructure may solidify their role as key players in the AI era.

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