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Highlights
- BlackRock (NYSE BLK) invested US$382 million in crypto mining firms Marathon Digital Holdings (Nasdaq:MARA) and Riot Blockchain (Nasdaq:RIOT).
- BlackRock becomes the second-largest investor in both firms.
- BlackRock stock surged to US$924.83 at 10.01 am ET on August 23.
BlackRock (NYSE BLK), the world’s leading asset manager, has invested over US$382 million in the Bitcoin mining companies Marathon Digital Holdings (Nasdaq:MARA) and Riot Blockchain (Nasdaq:RIOT).
BlackRock now owns 6.71 percent or US$207 million in Marathon Digital Holdings, and 6.61 percent or US$175 million in Riot Blockchain, according to papers filed by BLK with the SEC on June 30.
The investment is divided between BLK’s mutual funds and ETFs, which is iShares Russel 2000 ETF. This makes BLK the second-largest investor in both RIOT and MARA after the Vanguard Group.
BLK’s investments come after the American Bitcoin mining companies started to profit following China's ban on crypto mining.
Also read: Bitcoin touches $50,000 for the first time since May
In January, BLK had filed with the SEC to include Bitcoin futures for the BlackRock Global Allocation Fund and the BlackRock Strategic Income Opportunities Portfolio.
Thus, BLK that controls a whopping US$9 trillion asset has, joined organizations like Fidelity Investments and Goldman Sachs, which also have invested in crypto mining companies. Fidelity had recently invested in Marathon Digital.
It underlines the trend of the traditional financial companies increasingly starting to accept cryptocurrencies. The BLK stock surged 0.96 percent to US$924.83 at 10.01 am ET on Monday.
The market capitalization of BLK is US$140 billion. The P/E ratio is 26.02, and the forward P/E one year is 24.02. The EPS is US$35.58, and the annual dividend is US$16.52. The highest and lowest stock price of BLK in the last 52 weeks was US$924.97 and US$531.39. Its stock price went up by 28.89 percent YTD. The total revenue of BLK for Q2, 2021, was US$4.8 billion against US$3.6 billion in Q2 last year. The gross profit of the company was US$3.9 billion in Q2, 2021, and US$2.9 billion in the same period last year. The net income for the period was US$1.3 billion compared to US$1.2 billion in Q2 last year.
Also read: Liquid Heist: Hackers siphon off about US$97M from Japanese crypto exchange
How did MARA, RIOT stocks perform after the investment?
MARA's stock rose by 4.59 percent to US$36.88 at 10.26 am ET on August 23. Its market cap is US$3.7 billion. The forward P/E one year is 28.90, and the EPS is US$-0.38. Its 52-week highest and the lowest stock price was US$57.75 and US$1.48, respectively.
The RIOT stock went up by 3.45 percent to US$35.575 at 10.30 am ET on August 23. The market capitalization of this Bitcoin mining firm is US$3.4 billion. The forward P/E one year is 45.17, and the EPS is US$-0.10. Its 52-week highest and the lowest stock price was US$79.50 and US$2.35, respectively.
Bottomline
Investments in crypto firms have been growing of late as digital currencies gain acceptance from big companies, including financial institutions. BlackRock’s investment follows a string of similar investments by other companies in cryptocurrencies.
