MARA has fully repaid its Bitcoin-backed loans and is preparing to use its remaining cryptocurrency reserves to support its growing AI data center ambitions.
MARA Holdings has offloaded approximately $1.1 billion in Bitcoin since September as the mining company shifts its strategy toward generating capital for artificial intelligence infrastructure, debt obligations and potential share buybacks.
The company revealed in its third-quarter shareholder letter, filed Monday, that it sold 13,597 BTC at an average price of around $81,039 per coin. The transactions account for roughly 40% of its 34,012 BTC reserves reported at the end of September.
Notably, MARA sold six times more Bitcoin over the six-week period than it mined during the entire third quarter, highlighting the scale of its shift away from holding accumulated cryptocurrency.
The company directed $750 million of the proceeds toward repaying loans backed by its Bitcoin reserves. This move released 17,477 BTC previously pledged as collateral. Following the repayment, less than 5% of MARA’s remaining Bitcoin is now being lent or used as collateral, down sharply from 57% at the end of September.
MARA took out the loans in August to help finance its planned purchase of Long Ridge, a natural gas-powered energy company. It subsequently chose to sell Bitcoin and clear the outstanding debt before the acquisition’s anticipated completion.
The decision signals a major change in the company’s treasury management approach. In July 2024, MARA introduced a policy of retaining all newly mined Bitcoin while continuing to acquire additional BTC through open-market purchases.
That approach began changing in 2025, when the company authorized sales of newly mined coins. Earlier in 2026, it extended the policy to include Bitcoin already held in its reserves.
MARA disposed of 26,984 BTC during the first nine months of 2026. Including its latest transactions, the company’s Bitcoin sales for the year have now surpassed 40,000 BTC.
“We intend to continue using bitcoin to build cash for purposes such as AI infrastructure opportunities,” MARA said in its shareholder letter.
Nevertheless, the company may need to allocate some of its available cash toward other financial priorities. Certain bondholders will have the right to seek early repayment beginning next year, while MARA’s board has separately approved a stock buyback program worth as much as $500 million.
The shift toward AI infrastructure comes as Bitcoin mining profitability faces mounting challenges. MARA’s third-quarter revenue fell 35% year over year to $164 million. Despite the decline, the company recorded a $632 million profit, largely because of an $885 million accounting gain linked to Bitcoin’s appreciation during the quarter.
MARA is targeting completion of its Long Ridge acquisition within the next few weeks. The facility is permitted to sell 485 megawatts of electricity, and the adjacent land could accommodate a substantial data center development.
Beyond Long Ridge, the company also has development rights to a Texas site with potential electricity capacity of up to 2 gigawatts.
MARA is pursuing two additional data center lease agreements and hopes to finalize them before the end of the year. However, the company warned that discussions with potential partners could continue into 2027.
