Simply put
- Bitcoin miner MARA has cut 15% of its workforce as the company shifts its focus to AI.
- The job cuts are in conjunction with the company’s recent $1.1 billion Bitcoin sale and are reportedly not due to financial constraints.
- MARA stock closed Thursday up more than 8%, but has fallen 53% in the past six months.
Publicly traded Bitcoin miner MARA has cut its workforce by 15%, the company has confirmed, shortly after selling $1.1 billion worth of top crypto assets. decryption following the initials Report from block space media.
The newspaper reported, citing sources, that the layoffs will affect full-time employees in each department and could also affect the company’s contractors.
“MARA remains focused on executing its strategic evolution from a pure Bitcoin miner to an energy and digital infrastructure company,” a MARA spokesperson said. Decrypt.
“As we evolve, we need to know where to focus our business operations and resources as well. With this in mind, and as part of our broader growth strategy, we have made the difficult but necessary decision to reduce our team by approximately 15%,” they added.
According to an internal memo reviewed by block spacethe company’s CEO Fred Thiel said the decision was “a strategic decision, not a purely financial one.”
“As we have shared through recent announcements with Starwood and Exion, we are focusing the company in new directions,” he said. “That means we have to change the shape of our team accordingly.”
Thiel’s reported comments refer to the company’s strategic shift to AI data centers and enhancements to AI computing. Recent partnerships with data center development platforms Starwood Digital Ventures and its Investing in Exaionis a company that develops and operates data centers in Europe.
MARA, like other Bitcoin miners, has made a strategic shift to power AI and further high-performance computing needs, expanding its focus far beyond the top crypto assets. Recently, the company announced that: Approximately 15,000 units sold $BTC or more than $1.1 billion This allows them to buy back convertible bonds and strengthen their finances.
That sale took place after Approved strategic decision to allow Bitcoin to be sold from balance sheetnot just $BTC It was mined during operation.
Bitcoin miners are not the only ones offloading major reserve assets. Rival miner Riot Platform generated about $250 million in revenue. $BTC During the first quarter, then Earn about $200 million in profits In addition to the fourth quarter sales, earlier this year, Kango parted with more than $300 million. in $BTC This is because we will also focus on AI.
MARA stock rose more than 8% on Thursday, closing at $8.71. However, Bitcoin is trading around $67,000, down nearly 47% from its all-time high of $126,080, and the stock has fallen more than 53% in the past six months.
MARA is not the only crypto company to cut jobs in recent months, most notably Jack Dorsey’s Bitcoin company block, which cut more than 4,000 jobs in February. Other companies that have made recent cuts in this space include Gemini, Crypto.com, Algorand Foundation, and OP Labs. Some companies, such as Block and Gemini, say they are increasingly relying on AI tools to compensate for attrition.
