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ExxonMobil for Bitcoin

Barrick Gold for Bitcoin

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• Bitcoin Mining: The core activity of validating Bitcoin transactions and earning newly minted Bitcoin as a reward.
• Bitcoin Mining Hosting Services: Providing colocation, infrastructure, and power solutions for institutional clients to host their Bitcoin mining equipment.

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Riot Platforms (NASDAQ: RIOT) operates as a Bitcoin mining company. Its primary business involves developing and operating large-scale Bitcoin mining facilities to generate Bitcoin through transaction verification (mining).

Due to the nature of its business, Riot Platforms does not have traditional "major customers" with whom it maintains direct, long-term sales contracts for its core product (mined Bitcoin). Bitcoin is a commodity, and miners like Riot sell their mined Bitcoin into a global, liquid market rather than to specific, named end-users or companies.

However, when Riot Platforms chooses to liquidate its Bitcoin holdings to cover operational expenses, fund expansion, or generate profit, the immediate purchasers are primarily other companies acting as market intermediaries or large institutional buyers. Therefore, in the context of the prompt, Riot's sales are primarily to other companies. These include:

• Cryptocurrency Exchanges: These platforms act as market makers and facilitate the buying and selling of Bitcoin for a vast user base (both retail and institutional). Riot would sell its mined Bitcoin through these platforms or their associated market-making entities. A prominent example of a public cryptocurrency exchange that could be a direct purchaser is:
  • Coinbase Global, Inc. (COIN)
• Over-the-Counter (OTC) Trading Desks and Digital Asset Brokerages: These specialized services facilitate large-volume cryptocurrency trades, typically for institutional investors, high-net-worth individuals, and corporations. Miners often utilize OTC desks to execute large Bitcoin sales efficiently without significantly impacting public exchange prices. Many of these desks are operated by private firms or are divisions of larger financial institutions.
• Institutional Investors and Corporate Treasuries: While often purchasing through exchanges or OTC desks, very large direct sales could potentially be made to institutional entities or corporations seeking to add Bitcoin to their balance sheets or investment portfolios. However, direct contractual "customer" relationships between a miner and these entities for ongoing Bitcoin supply are not typical for a company like Riot that sells into an open market.

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• MicroBT
• Bitmain

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Jason Les, Chief Executive Officer

Jason Les joined Riot Platforms in 2017, becoming Chief Executive Officer in February 2021. His passion for Bitcoin began in 2013, gaining him significant experience in cryptocurrency mining, protocol development, and open-source projects. He was a founding partner of Binary Digital, where he led the engineering team on projects involving artificial intelligence, reverse engineering, and inter-software compatibility. Les also had a notable career as a professional heads-up poker player, competing in high-stakes games and being selected as a human benchmark for testing poker artificial intelligence at Carnegie Mellon University in 2015 and 2017.

Colin D. Yee, Executive Vice President, Chief Financial Officer

Colin D. Yee joined Riot Platforms in April 2022, initially as Head of Corporate and Financial Operations, and was appointed Chief Financial Officer in August 2022, becoming Executive Vice President, Chief Financial Officer in July 2023. He founded Clear Capital Management Corporation in September 2007. Prior to Riot, Yee served as the Chief Operating Financial Officer of Avebury Partners, an asset management firm focused on real estate and construction, from March 2021 to March 2022. He also previously held the position of CFO for a publicly traded real estate company in Canada.

Benjamin Yi, Executive Chairman

Benjamin Yi was recruited to Riot Platforms in October 2018, initially serving as a director and chair of the audit committee, before being elected Chairman of the Board in November 2020 and nominated as Executive Chairman in May 2021. He led the capital markets efforts at IOU Financial, a tech-enabled lender to small businesses that was acquired by Neuberger Berman in 2023. Earlier in his career, Yi worked directly under Ned Goodman, founder of Dundee Corporation, in an investment capacity across natural resource extraction, energy technology, real estate, and automotive sectors. He was also a securities analyst at the predecessor to 1832 Asset Management L.P., where he covered energy and special situations investments for one of North America's largest natural resources-focused investment funds. Benjamin has also served as an independent director and audit committee chair for several private and public companies.

William Jackman, Executive Vice President, General Counsel and Secretary

William Jackman has been associated with Riot Platforms since September 2018 as external counsel, joining the management team in July 2021 as Executive Vice President and General Counsel, and serving as Secretary since September 2022. Before joining Riot, Jackman practiced law at several leading law firms, including a global AM100 law firm and one of the largest global law firms in Canada, where he represented S&P 500 companies and other public entities in corporate finance, securities laws, mergers and acquisitions, and power generation. He also served a secondment at the Ontario Securities Commission (OSC) in the Corporate Finance division in 2014. From March 2018 to January 2022, he was a Leader of Public Companies and Securities at Roger Towers, P.A., and a Senior Corporate Attorney at Holland & Knight LLP from May 2014 through August 2017.

Jason Chung, Executive Vice President, Head of Corporate Development & Strategy

Jason Chung joined Riot Platforms in June 2022 as Head of Corporate Development & Strategy, and became Executive Vice President in 2023. He brings two decades of experience in investment banking, having served as Managing Director, M&A at Nomura Holdings Inc. In this role, he advised global clients on cross-border transactions within the technology sector across various countries, including the US, Canada, Germany, Japan, Korea, France, and Singapore. His investment banking career involved M&A transactions totaling nearly $20 billion and included building and growing advisory teams.

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Competition for Energy Resources from AI Data Centers

The explosive growth of Artificial Intelligence (AI) applications is creating a massive and rapidly escalating demand for energy, particularly reliable and often renewable sources. This directly pits AI data centers against energy-intensive Bitcoin mining operations, like Riot Platforms, in the competition for critical power infrastructure and favorable energy contracts. This emerging dynamic can lead to higher energy prices for miners, reduced availability of attractive power purchase agreements, and increased grid strain, directly impacting mining profitability and expansion capabilities.

Accelerating Competition and Consolidation within the Bitcoin Mining Industry

The Bitcoin mining industry is experiencing an intensification of competition, particularly following the recent halving event which reduced block rewards. Larger, well-capitalized mining companies are aggressively expanding their hash rate, investing in the latest generation Application-Specific Integrated Circuits (ASICs), and securing advantageous long-term power purchase agreements. This escalating competitive pressure, evidenced by continuous announcements of significant hash rate increases and strategic acquisitions by major players, can compress margins for less efficient or slower-growing companies and lead to industry consolidation, making it challenging for individual companies to maintain or grow market share and profitability.

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Riot Platforms (RIOT) primarily focuses on Bitcoin mining operations, complemented by data center hosting services for third-party miners and engineering services for cryptocurrency mining infrastructure.

Addressable Markets:

• Global Cryptocurrency Mining Market (for Bitcoin Mining Operations):

  The global cryptocurrency mining market size was valued at approximately USD 2.45 billion in 2024, growing to an estimated USD 2.77 billion in 2025. It is predicted to surpass around USD 8.24 billion by 2034, expanding at a compound annual growth rate (CAGR) of 12.90% between 2024 and 2034. North America is identified as a dominant region in the global cryptocurrency mining market, with the U.S. holding the largest share within the region.

• Global Bitcoin Miner Market (for Mining Hardware and Infrastructure, relevant to Engineering Services):

  The global Bitcoin Miner Market size was valued at USD 11.19 billion in 2024, and is projected to reach USD 14.17 billion in 2025. This market is expected to grow to USD 94.14 billion by 2033, exhibiting a CAGR of 26.7% during the forecast period. North America accounts for 33% of this market. The global ASIC Bitcoin Mining Hardware Market, a key component, is valued at USD 11.41 billion in 2025 and is expected to reach USD 27.85 billion by 2035.

• Global Blockchain in Infrastructure Market (for Data Center Hosting and Infrastructure Platform):

  The Blockchain in Infrastructure market, which encompasses technologies relevant to Riot Platforms' "Bitcoin-driven infrastructure platform" strategy and data center hosting, was valued at approximately USD 1.9 billion in 2023 and is projected to reach USD 16.2 billion by 2030, with a CAGR of 36.30% during the forecast period. Another estimate projects the market size to reach approximately USD 3.06 billion by 2030, with a CAGR of 40.2% from 2024 to 2030. North America held a 40.6% market share in the Blockchain in Infrastructure Market in 2020.

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Riot Platforms (RIOT) is expected to drive future revenue growth over the next 2-3 years through several key initiatives:

1. Expansion of Bitcoin Mining Capacity: Riot Platforms is heavily focused on increasing its self-mining hash rate through the expansion of its existing facilities and the development of new ones. The company has plans to expand its capacity significantly, including the Corsicana and Rockdale facilities, and a strategic entry into Kentucky to reach a self-mining hash rate goal of 100 exahash. This expansion in deployed hash rate is a primary driver for increasing Bitcoin production and, consequently, Bitcoin mining revenue. For example, the increase in deployed hash rate to 28 EH/s by Q3 2024 was a key factor in a 65% year-over-year revenue increase in that quarter.
2. Leveraging Bitcoin Price Appreciation: While Riot Platforms focuses on operational growth, the price of Bitcoin continues to be a significant factor influencing its revenue. Historically, higher Bitcoin prices have substantially driven revenue growth for the company. Management has noted that strong tailwinds in Bitcoin price contribute to achieving record net income.
3. Expansion into High-Performance Computing (HPC) and AI Data Centers: Riot Platforms is strategically pivoting to become a diversified data center operator, capitalizing on the surging demand for AI and high-performance computing infrastructure. The company is actively developing its data center business, including initiating core and shell development for 112 megawatts of IT load capacity at its Corsicana Data Center campus, aiming to leverage its extensive power portfolio. This pivot is seen as a major shift that could accelerate cash flow and improve the profit outlook.
4. Growth of Engineering Services: The company's wholly-owned subsidiary, ESS Metron, contributes to revenue by designing and manufacturing electrical equipment for data centers. Riot Platforms has made strategic acquisitions, such as E4A Solutions in December 2024, to enhance its engineering capabilities and expand operational services, which in turn contributes to overall revenue. Engineering revenue grew significantly in Q1 2025 and Q3 2025, partly due to these enhancements and acquisitions.

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Share Issuance

• Riot Platforms raised significant capital through At-The-Market (ATM) equity offerings, issuing approximately 90.6 million shares in 2024 for net proceeds of $956.6 million.
• Total shares outstanding increased from approximately 153 million in early 2022 to over 329 million as of Q1 2025, indicating significant share dilution.
• The company issued $594.4 million in Convertible Senior Notes due 2030, with proceeds used to acquire Bitcoin.

Outbound Investments

• In 2024, Riot Platforms acquired Block Mining, Inc., a Kentucky-based vertically-integrated Bitcoin miner, adding two operational sites with 60 MW capacity and plans to expand to 110 MW for self-mining operations in 2025.
• Riot acquired ESS Metron in December 2021, which has contributed to capital expenditure savings of $23.0 million by Q3 2025.
• Riot made a strategic investment in Bitfarms but began trimming its stake in May 2025, reducing its holdings by approximately 40% as of July 16, 2025.

Capital Expenditures

• Total capital expenditures for 2025 are forecasted at $204.7 million, with $48.9 million spent in Q1 2025 and $155.8 million projected for the remainder of the year.
• Primary focus of capital expenditures includes the expansion of the Corsicana facility, involving 600MW substation development, land acquisition, and water access, and purchasing miners for Kentucky facilities to increase hash rate capacity.
• Through December 31, 2024, Riot executed purchase orders for miners totaling approximately $550.1 million to achieve a self-mining hash rate capacity of 38.4 EH/s by mid-2025.