MARA Boosts Bitcoin Holdings by 300% with Two Prime Acquisition

MARA Holdings, a prominent Bitcoin mining company, has completed a minority acquisition of Two Prime, an institutional investment adviser managing $1.75 billion in assets. This strategic move significantly increases the amount of Bitcoin (BTC) that Two Prime manages on behalf of MARA. The deal includes a $20 million equity investment in Two Prime, with MARA boosting its Bitcoin allocation to 2,000 BTC from the previous 500 BTC. The Bitcoin will be held in a Separately Managed Account and utilized to generate yield for MARA.

Two Prime, registered with the US Securities and Exchange Commission, specializes in helping institutions and professional investors gain exposure to Bitcoin. MARA, known for holding one of the world’s largest Bitcoin treasuries, initially built through its self-mining operations, has previously announced plans to sell stock to acquire additional Bitcoin. This strategy mirrors that of Michael Saylor, the CEO of MicroStrategy, who has been a vocal advocate for holding Bitcoin as a treasury reserve asset.

MARA’s chief financial officer, Salman Khan, highlighted that this strategy is part of the company’s broader effort to activate its Bitcoin balance, treating BTC as more than just a “passive asset tied to price appreciation.” This move positions MARA as a key player in the Bitcoin mining industry, with a significant Bitcoin treasury of 50,000 BTC, making it the second-largest publicly traded Bitcoin treasury firm.

Despite the recent challenges faced by Bitcoin mining firms following the quadrennial halving, which cut block rewards by 50%, MARA has experienced mixed outcomes. The reduced revenue potential, coupled with rising energy and equipment costs, has placed pressure on miners’ profitability. For MARA, this translated into a $533 million net loss in Q1, despite a nearly 30% increase in revenue to $214 million. Streamlining electricity costs has become a key profitability driver in the post-halving environment.

In response to these challenges, several miners, including Core Scientific and HIVE Digital, have begun pivoting their business models toward AI data center hosting and repurposing infrastructure for high-performance computing (HPC) workloads. However, Core Scientific’s future in Bitcoin mining is less certain after it was acquired by CoreWeave in a $9 billion all-stock deal. CoreWeave has indicated that it may “repurpose” Core Scientific’s assets toward HPC or divest its crypto operations entirely.

MARA’s acquisition of Two Prime and the allocation of 2,000 BTC is a strategic move that positions the company as a leader in the Bitcoin mining space. The decision to follow Saylor’s playbook is a clear indication of MARA’s commitment to Bitcoin and its potential as a store of wealth. The company’s focus on increasing its Bitcoin allocation and mining capacity is expected to yield significant returns in the long run, as the value of Bitcoin continues to appreciate. This move aligns with MARA’s ambition to grow its Bitcoin mining capacity by 40% by the end of 2025, targeting 75 exahashes, and reflects its confidence in the future of Bitcoin.