Argo Blockchain PLC has become the latest Bitcoin mining company to have sold more Bitcoin than it mined in a month.
According to a recent update, Argo sold 637 Bitcoin (BTC) in June at an average price of $24,500, bringing its total revenue from Bitcoin trades last month to $15.6 million.
In June, Argo mined 179 BTC, an increase of 55 BTC from May. June’s haul only accounts for about 28% of all the Bitcoin the company sold last month, however.
Argo said that the proceeds from last month’s Bitcoin sell-off are being “used to fund operating expenses and growth capital, as well as to reduce obligations under a BTC-backed loan agreement with Galaxy Digital.”
As of June 30, Argo holds 1,935 Bitcoins, 210 of which are Bitcoin equivalents.
It has an outstanding balance of $22 million on the Bitcoin-backed Galaxy Digital loan.
Crypto miners drop Bitcoin
Data by Arcane Research revealed that publicly-traded Bitcoin miners, like Marathon Digital and Riot Blockchain, sold more Bitcoin than they mined in May—a huge change from the first four months of the year, when miners sold just 30% of their earnings.
Jaran Mellerud, an Arcane Research Bitcoin mining analyst, wrote: “If they are forced to liquidate a considerable share of these holdings, it could contribute to pushing the Bitcoin price further down.”
On Tuesday, an update for investors in Core Scientific said that the NASDAQ-listed firm also sold 7,202 Bitcoin ($165 million) last month at an average price of $23,000, leaving it with just 1,959 Bitcoin.
The massive sell-off was to cover increased overheads at a time of “historic inflation,” said chief executive Mike Levitt.
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Source: https://decrypt.co/104594/argo-blockchain-the-latest-crypto-mining-firm-dump-bitcoin