Sam Bankman-Fried, the founder of crypto exchange FTX, has reassured speculation that the company is exploring acquisitions of distressed crypto mining companies, clarifying in a tweet on Saturday that they “aren’t really looking into the space.” He said that crypto miners did not fit into the company’s core strategy and there is no collaboration from an acquisition standpoint.
“Really not sure why the meme about FTX and mining companies is spreading, the actual quote was that we *aren’t* really looking into the space,” Bankman-Fried clarified on Twitter on July 2.
The rumor that the company was on the lookout for mining firms spread after the interview with Bloomberg on July 1, after the FTX founder said he did not want to discount the possibility of a “compelling opportunity” in the mining industry, stating:
“There might come along a really compelling opportunity for us — I definitely don’t want to discount that possibility.”
However, the quote appears to have been taken out of context, forcing SBF to explain that the firm is “not particularly looking at miners” but is “happy to have conversations” with mining companies.
Bankman-Fried also specified during the interview that crypto miners had no fit into the company’s core strategy and that he saw no synergy from an acquisition standpoint.
“I don’t see any particular reasons that we need to have, you know, an integration with a crypto miner.”
“From a strategic perspective, there’s no particular obvious synergy necessarily from an acquisition standpoint,” he further said.
Bankman-Fried was questioned whether he was looking into mining firms amid a falling crypto market that has seen Bitcoin mining profits fall sharply this year.
At the same time, the Russian invasion of Ukraine has also caused energy costs to skyrocket — causing a dual impact on miners, small and large.
According to Bitinfocharts, mining effectiveness, which is a measure of daily dollars per terahashes per second has got lows not seen since October 2020
A report from Bloomberg on June 24 exposed that there were as much as $4 billion in Bitcoin mining loans, with a growing number now underwater as Bitcoin and mining get-up prices have fallen.
Cointelegraph reported last week, that Bitcoin (BTC) mining revenue has been reflecting year lows not seen since mid-2021, with Bitcoin mining revenue dipping to $14.40 million on June 17.
Arcane Research data in June revealed that the deteriorating profitability of mining has forced public miners to start liquidating their holdings. It also revealed that several of these firms sold 100% of their BTC production in May — likely to cover operating costs and loan repayments.
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