Shares of Bitcoin mining companies rallied strongly on Monday, recovering from last week’s sharp sell-off amid renewed optimism tied to growing artificial intelligence (AI) infrastructure needs. Leading the charge were Bitfarms (BITF) and Cipher Mining (CIFR), which surged 26% and 20%, respectively. Meanwhile, Bitdeer (BTDR), IREN (IREN), and MARA Holdings (MARA) posted gains around 10%, reflecting heightened investor confidence in the AI sector’s potential to boost demand for crypto mining resources.
Investor sentiment gained further support after OpenAI, the developer behind ChatGPT, announced a collaboration with semiconductor giant Broadcom (AVGO) to develop custom chips tailored for AI and machine learning applications. This partnership signals a broader trend of increasing investment in specialized computing hardware that powers both AI workloads and crypto mining operations.
Additionally, Bloom Energy (BE) revealed a $5 billion agreement with Brookfield Asset Management aimed at deploying fuel cell technology in data centers to address the substantial energy requirements demanded by AI computing. These developments underscore the growing convergence between AI innovations and data center expansion, which could benefit crypto miners dependent on such infrastructure.
The Monday rebound followed a difficult end to the week when escalating U.S.-China trade tensions weighed heavily on technology-focused equities. The imposition of a 100% tariff hike on certain Chinese imports by former President Trump, in response to China’s tightened restrictions on rare earth metal exports, triggered widespread market declines. Over the weekend, investor concerns appeared to moderate, contributing to a 2.1% rise in the Nasdaq and a 1.4% increase in the S&P 500 on Monday.
Other crypto-related stocks showed more modest moves. MicroStrategy (MSTR), recognized for holding one of the largest Bitcoin treasuries in the world, climbed 2.8%, while Coinbase’s shares remained relatively unchanged. Robinhood, a major retail brokerage generating significant revenue from cryptocurrency trading, saw a 1% uptick.
Ethereum-focused treasury firm BitMine (BMNR) also posted gains, rising nearly 7%. The company confirmed it had capitalized on recent price declines by acquiring over 200,000 Ethereum tokens, a purchase valued at more than $840 million at current market prices.
The recent market movements highlight how AI developments and strategic partnerships in chip manufacturing and data center technology are increasingly intersecting with the cryptocurrency mining space, offering new growth avenues despite ongoing geopolitical and trade uncertainties.
