Crypto mining company BIT Mining has made a radical shift in its operations, shifting its focus to the Solana (SOL) ecosystem. The New York Stock Exchange (NYSE)-listed company announced plans to gradually accumulate SOL by raising between $200 million and $300 million.
BIT Mining to exchange all of its cryptocurrency to Solana
According to the company's press release, BIT Mining will convert all of its existing crypto assets to Solana and adopt a long-term holding strategy. It will also operate validator nodes on the Solana network, contributing to the network's decentralization and seeking to generate income from on-chain staking rewards.
BIT Mining CEO Xianfeng Yang described this strategic move as "a bold entry into one of the most dynamic and promising ecosystems in the blockchain world." Yang stated in his statement: “We are embarking on this new path to adapt to the changing industry and generate lasting value. We believe that with our robust infrastructure and long-term vision, we will accelerate sustainable growth for our shareholders.”
The company's current operations include custom hardware design and hosting services for Bitcoin, Litecoin, Dogecoin, and Ethereum Classic mining. BIT Mining, particularly notable for its 7nm Bitcoin mining chips, currently ranks 17th in market capitalization among publicly traded Bitcoin mining companies. Following the news, the company's share price (BTCM) gained over 250 percent in pre-market trading on Thursday.
This move makes BIT Mining one of the latest companies to join the institutional crypto treasury race. This strategy, pioneered by MicroStrategy, involves companies including digital assets such as BTC, ETH, SOL, XRP, and BNB on their balance sheets. BIT Mining's choice of Solana distinguishes it from companies like Bit Digital and BitMine, which are making Ethereum-focused moves. Meanwhile, two other mining companies with the "Bit" prefix have shifted their focus to crypto treasury strategies in recent weeks. Nasdaq-listed Bit Digital has completely transitioned away from Bitcoin mining and begun accumulating ETH. The company recently raised $173 million in capital, bringing its Ethereum reserves to over 100,000. BitMine, meanwhile, set out to increase its ETH holdings 16-fold with a $250 million private placement. Fundstrat co-founder Tom Lee was among the investors, and Lee was also appointed chairman of BitMine's board of directors.
BIT Mining's history is also noteworthy. In 2021, the company operated as 500.com, a China-based sports lottery service provider. At the time, the company was in the spotlight due to allegations of bribery against Japanese government officials. In April 2021, the company shifted its focus to crypto mining and changed its name. BIT Mining reached an agreement with the US Department of Justice and the SEC, agreeing to pay a total of $10 million in fines.
