Hold onto your hats, because Cango is racing full throttle into the Bitcoin mining world! The Shanghai-based car dealership is switching gears from selling cars to mining digital gold, thanks to a hefty $256 million deal snagging 32 exahashes per second (EH/s) of hashrate from Bitmain Technologies.
Just last November, Cango mined a whopping 363 Bitcoins—worth a cool $36 million—without even selling off any assets. This bold move catapulted them into the big leagues, making them one of the top dogs in the global Bitcoin mining scene.
According to some insider whispers, Cango now ranks as the fifth-largest public Bitcoin miner by realized hashrate. They're also the third-largest by deployed hashrate, contributing a hefty 4% of the world's daily Bitcoin production. Not too shabby for a company that only recently joined the crypto craze!
Cango's grand entrance into Bitcoin mining is powered by some savvy acquisitions. Their initial purchase from Bitmain, which includes on-rack miners, is reportedly tucked away in the U.S., possibly in Georgia, under a cozy 18-month colocation deal. This lets Cango store its mining gear with a hosting service, keeping it safe and sound without the hassle of running their own data centers—perfect since China put the kibosh on crypto mining back in 2021 due to financial and environmental concerns.
But here’s the kicker: despite the ban, Chinese mining pools still hold a massive chunk of the global Bitcoin hashrate, with some estimates pegging it at around 55%.
Now, Cango's got their sights set on an extra 18 EH/s from Golden TechGen, led by former Bitmain CFO Max Hua. This $144 million deal, slated to wrap up by March 2025, could rev up Cango’s total hashrate to a roaring 50 EH/s. That’s enough horsepower to potentially go head-to-head with industry giants like Marathon Digital Holdings.
Rumor has it that Cango’s new toys might include Bitmain’s Antminer S19XP rigs, scoring them at a sweet $8 per terahash per second (TH/s).
With Bitcoin prices cruising around the $100,000 mark and network hashprices bouncing back, Cango’s crypto adventure couldn’t be better timed. It’s quite the pivot from their humble beginnings in car sales, but it’s all part of their knack for reinvention.
Founded in 2010, Cango first tackled motor vehicle financing before shifting gears to car trading, driven by regulatory winds in China. Earlier this year, they broadened their horizons again, launching AutoCango.com—a platform for selling used Chinese cars to global buyers.
As Cango shifts focus to Bitcoin mining, it seems the venture might soon overshadow its traditional revenue streams. Their initial foray into crypto already outshone their Q3 earnings of $3.84 million by a long shot, sending their stock price zooming from $3.41 to $6.91 and boosting their market cap to $500 million! Buckle up, because Cango’s crypto ride is just getting started.
