Ionic Digital (NASDAQ: IOND) surged over 25% on its first day trading on Nasdaq, climbing from a $50 opening to nearly $63 per share on July 28. This jump values the Bitcoin mining firm at about $2.75 billion. The company chose a direct listing instead of a traditional IPO, allowing existing shareholders to sell shares without raising new capital.
Born from the Celsius Network bankruptcy earlier this year, Ionic acquired most of Celsius Mining’s Bitcoin mining hardware, $195 million in cash, and 540 BTC in reserves. Initially, Hut 8 managed these mining sites under a four-year agreement but Ionic took direct control within months. Hut 8 remains a minority stakeholder and has seen its stock rise on similar moves into AI infrastructure.
From Bitcoin Mining to AI Cloud Contracts
Ionic is pivoting toward AI hosting by leasing its 234-megawatt Cedarvale facility in Texas to AI cloud provider Nscale. The 10-year lease deals are valued at roughly $2 billion, potentially increasing to $2.6 billion after recent amendments. Despite this shift, Ionic continues Bitcoin mining at four sites in Midland, Texas, producing nearly 25 BTC in May, with a treasury holding about 2,861 BTC. The company expects mining output to decrease as more capacity moves to AI workloads.
This Nasdaq debut aligns Ionic with other miners like Hut 8 and TeraWulf who are turning to longer-term AI hosting contracts to stabilize revenue against Bitcoin’s price volatility. By becoming a public company, Ionic provides Celsius creditors with tradable stock, linking its future closely to AI infrastructure success rather than Bitcoin market swings.
This content is for informational purposes and does not constitute financial advice.
