Cryptocurrency mining hardware manufacturer Bitmain is now valued at $12 billion, following the recently concluded Series B funding which raised $400 million for one of the biggest crypto mining companies in the world.
As reported by a local Chinese media outlet, Caixin, Bitmain’s recent funding round was participated mostly by its primary investors: Sequoia Capital’s subsidiary, Sequoia China; U.S.-based Coatue hedge fund; and Singapore governmental investment fund EDBI. Sequoia Capital, a long time backer of Bitmain, also participated in the crypto mining company’s Series A funding in July 2017 alongside IDG Capital.
Since its creation in 2013, Bitmain has had tremendous success. In 2017, the company posted profits of an estimated $2.5 billion from its core cryptocurrency mining business. It has also ventured into other blockchain-related projects in addition to manufacturing Application Specific Integrated Circuits (ASIC). The company owns AntPool and BTC.com, the two biggest BTC mining pools globally. Bitmain also has a controlling stake in ViaBTC, which is the third largest crypto mining pool.
The three mining pools reportedly give Bitmain nearly 51 percent (BTC.com-22.9%, AntPool-12.5%, and ViaBTC-11.8%) control of the BTC mining hashrate. With this much power, Bitmain could theoretically manipulate the BTC network. However, Bitmain claims it has no intentions of carrying out such an attack on the BTC network.
Bitmain recently made headlines over reports that it was planning to conduct an IPO in the coming days. According to an inside source, the company is most likely to conduct its IPO in Hong Kong. If Bitmain succeeds in conducting its IPO, it will join the ranks of Ebang Communication and Canaan Creative who applied to hold their IPOs with the Hong Kong Stock Exchange.
Bitmain is also making arrangements to invest in the upcoming Opera Ltd’s $115 million IPO. The mining firm is additionally interested in other business alongside cryptocurrency and mining hardware projects. It ventured into artificial intelligence (AI) informed by its experience in the ASIC market.
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