Riot Platforms Inc. (NASDAQ: RIOT), the third-largest Bitcoin (BTC) miner on Wall Street, has increased its stake in rival Bitfarms Ltd. (NASDAQ: BITF) to 18.9%, stepping up efforts to reshape the Canadian miner’s board of directors.

Riot Platforms Increases Stake in Bitfarms, Continues to Push for Governance Changes

In a regulatory filing on Tuesday, Riot announced the acquisition of an additional 1 million shares of Bitfarms common stock through open market purchases. The transaction, valued at approximately $2.28 million, brings Riot’s total holdings to 85.3 million shares, up from 84.3 million previously.

The move comes amid ongoing tensions between the two cryptocurrency mining companies. In April, Riot made an unsolicited $950 million bid to acquire Bitfarms, which was promptly rejected due to the company being undervalued. Bitfarms subsequently adopted a “poison pill” defense to fend off potential hostile takeover attempts.

Riot Platforms, Inc. announces an 18.9% economic interest in Bitfarms Ltd. For more information, visit: https://t.co/rUt5EroO5I.

— Riot Platforms, Inc. (@RiotPlatforms) August 13, 2024

While Riot withdrew its initial takeover proposal, the company continued to pressure Bitfarms’ leadership. In June, Riot demanded a special shareholders meeting to remove certain Bitfarms directors and replace them with independent candidates.

The boardroom battle appears to be paying off. Earlier on Tuesday, Bitfarms announced the immediate departure of co-founder and chairman Nicolas Bonta, one of three board members Riot sought to replace.

Meanwhile, the company named Liam Wilson as Chief Operating Officer and promoted Ben Gagnon to President early last month. He previously held several positions, including Chief Mining Officer and Director of Business Development.

“Founding Bitfarms and overseeing its growth has been the highlight of my professional career. Now is the right time for me to step down and for Ben to join the Board of Directors,” Bonta noted.

Riot certainly has a market advantage here, as it is one of the three largest cryptocurrency miners on Wall Street. Its market cap exceeds $2 billion, more than double that of Bitfarms.

Riot indicated that it would continue to evaluate its investment in Bitfarms and may consider further actions, including adjusting its position or proposing additional changes to the composition of its board of directors.

Riot Increases BTC Production

Meanwhile, the company has found success with acquisitions elsewhere. In late July, Riot completed the purchase of Block Mining in Kentucky for $92.5 million. The acquisition significantly increases Riot’s hash rate and expands its geographic presence beyond Texas into new energy markets.

The transaction, which closed on July 23, included a cash payment of $18.5 million and $74 million in Riot shares. Additionally, a potential earn-out of up to $32.5 million is available through 2025, contingent on Block Mining securing further power purchase agreements.

This month, Riot also released information about its Bitcoin production for July. The company reported a 45% increase in mining output, with 370 BTC produced. This figure is significantly higher than the 255 BTC mined in June, despite a sharp drop in Bitcoin prices at the time. While this represents a 10% drop compared to July of the previous year, when 410 BTC were mined, the revenue from Bitcoins mined last month is expected to be significantly higher when looking at average prices during these periods.

This article was written by Damian Chmiel on www.financemagnates.com.