MARA Holdings (MARA), the largest bitcoin (BTC) miner by market capitalization, has announced that it is lending out 7,377 BTC to third parties as part of a strategy to generate returns and offset operational costs.
In a production report released on Friday, the company revealed that this lending initiative ties up approximately 16% of its total bitcoin holdings. However, MARA did not disclose the identities of the borrowers or the specific terms of the program. Robert Samuels, the company’s vice president of investor relations, noted in a post on X that the lending program is yielding a return of less than 10%. “There has been substantial interest in MARA’s bitcoin lending program,” Samuels stated. “The program focuses on short-term, well-established third-party agreements, generating a modest single-digit yield. It has been active throughout 2024 with the aim of generating enough return to cover operating expenses.”
MARA also reported its bitcoin production for December, noting that it mined 890 BTC, a 2% decrease from November, though it remains the second-highest monthly production since the April reward halving.
CEO Fred Thiel highlighted, “We mined 249 blocks in December, which is the second-highest block production in a month in our history. MARAPool achieved a 168% annual hash rate growth in 2024, surpassing the bitcoin network’s growth rate of 49%.”
For the full year of 2024, MARA acquired 22,065 BTC at an average price of $87,205 and mined an additional 9,457 BTC, bringing its total bitcoin holdings to 44,893 BTC. With bitcoin trading just under $100,000, MARA remains the second-largest publicly traded holder of bitcoin, after MicroStrategy (MSTR).
MARA’s stock increased by 2.60% in pre-market trading, and shares have risen by 14% year-to-date.
