MARA Sells 13,597 Bitcoin for About $1.1 Billion, Repays Secured Loans
Key Facts
MARA Holdings sold 13,597 bitcoin after the end of the third quarter, generating proceeds of about $1.1 billion, and used $750 million of them to fully repay bitcoin-backed loans, according to the company’s third-quarter filing submitted on Nov. 9. The move extinguished the loan obligations tied to that collateral and returned the pledged coins to the company. MARA had deposited 17,477 bitcoin as collateral for the loans on Sept. 30. Repayment means the company no longer needs to allocate that amount to secure the repaid loans. The sale came after the financial period covered by the report, while the third-quarter results detail mining operations and bitcoin holdings before the transaction.
The transaction’s effect on the financing structure stands out amid quarterly results that combined high net income with declining revenue. MARA reported net income attributable to common stockholders of $634.357 million in the third quarter of 2026, compared with $123.128 million in the same period of 2025. But revenue was $164.2 million, down 35% year over year, and below second-quarter revenue of $174.9 million, according to The Block’s report on the results. The divergence limits what net income alone can say about operating performance, as quarterly revenue was lower than both a year earlier and the previous quarter. Proceeds from the post-quarter sale were directed toward repaying loans and returning collateral, alongside this mixed financial picture.
The Block attributed most of the reported profit to bitcoin’s increase in value, citing fair-value gains of nearly $885 million on digital assets and bitcoin receivables. MARA, meanwhile, said bitcoin mining revenue fell $83.1 million year over year in the third quarter. The main factor was a 37% decline in the average price of bitcoin mined, which reduced revenue by about $94.8 million. Higher production offset part of the impact, adding $11.7 million to revenue. These items show how net income could rise while mining revenue remained under price pressure compared with the previous year.
MARA held 34,012 bitcoin on Sept. 30, with a total fair value of about $2.8 billion, according to the filing. The total included 19,260 bitcoin under the company’s digital asset management strategy. MARA had sold about 26,984 bitcoin for $1.9 billion during the nine months ended Sept. 30. The sale of 13,597 bitcoin took place after that quarter ended and is therefore presented separately from the nine-month sales in the filing. The return of the 17,477 bitcoin that had been pledged as collateral also explains how the loan balance can decline without the sale alone meaning that the entire value of the coins sold went toward repayment.
In a separate capital allocation decision, MARA’s board on Nov. 9 authorized an optional share repurchase program for up to $500 million of the company’s common stock. The authorization sets a ceiling on what the company may repurchase, but does not mean the full amount will be spent or that purchases will happen immediately. On expansion, the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission on Nov. 4 approved MARA’s previously announced acquisition of Long Ridge, finding the transaction consistent with the public interest. The company said it expects to complete the acquisition in the coming weeks, subject to the remaining customary conditions. The company is also awaiting the signing of two lease agreements before year-end, but warned that timing could slip into 2027 because of volatile market conditions.
MARA is seeking to expand the use of its power and computing infrastructure alongside its bitcoin mining business. In its shareholder letter, the company said activated operating capacity reached 1.9 gigawatts across nearly 20 sites on 4 continents, with a stated path to about 4.8 gigawatts. Activated hashrate was 71.2 exahashes per second in the third quarter of 2026, compared with 60.4 exahashes per second in the same period of 2025. At the Long Ridge facility, the company said it has authorization to sell 485 megawatts and expects to reach its 505-megawatt nameplate capacity in the first half of 2027. It also targeted signing the two lease agreements before the end of 2026, while acknowledging that completion could extend into the following year.