Bitcoin miner Northern Data mulls IPO for its AI unit: Report
German Bitcoin miner and cloud computing firm Northern Data AG is reportedly seeking an initial public offering for two of its entities in the United States at a valuation of up to $16 billion.
According to a July 1 report from Bloomberg, citing people familiar with the matter, executives at Northern Data — Europe’s largest Bitcoin miner by market cap — have contacted several advisers about an IPO and are eyeing a potential listing in the first half of 2025.
Under the current plan, Northern Data would list the “Taiga” and “Ardent” entities on the Nasdaq, which comprise its cloud computing and data center arms, respectively.
Northern Data’s Bitcoin (BTC) mining business, Peak Mining, could see a separate listing too, the firm reportedly told analysts and investors back in November.
Northern Data considered an IPO listing for its cryptocurrency mining business in the U.S. in February 2021; however, nothing came of it.
The sources said the banks have suggested a valuation between $10 billion and $16 billion but added that deliberations are still taking place — plans may change, and Northern Data may even scrap the IPO altogether.
Northern Data didn’t immediately respond to Cointelegraph’s request for comment.
Northern Data Group was founded as Northern Bitcoin AG in Germany in 2009, making it one of the first Bitcoin mining firms to exist.
The firm today has three business divisions — Taiga, Ardent, and Peak Mining — the latter being its U.S. Bitcoin mining unit with 700 megawatts of high-performance computing data centers in development, which the company said will eventually provide up to 40 exahashes.
For a period of time, Peak Mining focused its mining operations on the Ethereum network before it transitioned from proof-of-work to proof-of-stake in September 2022, Bloomberg noted. Its focus has since switched back to Bitcoin.
Related: AI’s energy consumption concerns echo Bitcoin mining criticisms, says Heatbit founder
Northern Data is one of several Bitcoin miners that has expanded into the AI space as profit margins continue to thin in the Bitcoin mining sector.
Core Scientific, TeraWulf and Hut 8 Corp are among the other Bitcoin mining firms that have followed a similar trajectory in recent months.
Northern Data secured $610 million in debt financing from stablecoin issuer firm Tether in November 2023, to drive investments in its mining and AI businesses.
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