Nvidia wants pre-crypto bear stock sold off entirely by Q1 end

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Global chip manufacturer Nvidia has said it will finally complete the sale of its surplus stock, built up in anticipation of growing demand before the onset of the crypto bear market, Bloomberg reported.

The stockpiles that built up towards the end of 2017 and 2018 have been a major drag on the firm since, which has been struggling to shift units following the collapse in cryptocurrency prices.

As a result of the poor performance in cryptocurrency, particularly Bitcoin Core (BTC), a number of mining companies have been squeezed out of business in recent months, with operators throughout the crypto sector struggling to remain viable. This combined with increased mining difficulties and spiraling energy prices have made mining cryptocurrencies less commercially appealing than ever.

Nvidia saw rapid expansion from 2016 until crypto crash, fueled by strong demand for its mining hardware. However, since the bear market began, the firm has slipped to become the worst performing stock on the S&P 500 in 2018.

As the sell-through of old stock nears completion, the company will now work to rebuild its market position following the difficulties in recent years.

The announcement came amidst financial forecasts showing revenues flat on the year, and slightly down for the financial year to April 2020.

The extra inventory was described by CEO Jensen Huang as the firm’s “crypto hangover,” with analysts attributing the decision to load up on stock as one of the key reasons for Nvidia’s challenging couple of years.

Despite the mistake, Huang maintains the firm is now well-placed to return to growth. It remains to be seen whether he can convince investors.

Other mining firms ran into considerable difficulties over the bear market, including mining giant Bitmain. The Chinese ASIC manufacturer was forced to sack swathes of employees and wrap up office facilities in a bid to save money under the shadow of a possible insolvency.

Earlier this month, revenues for crypto miners returned to modest growth, posting positive returns for the firm time in almost 19 months.

As firms continue to recover from the mistakes leading up to the collapse in the crypto bubble, they emerge into a more mature ecosystem of cryptocurrencies and blockchain technology.