Bitcoin Miner Riot Platforms Ditches Bitfarms Takeover Bid, Seeks to Overhaul Board

For over a year now, Riot has made efforts to hold productive discussions with Bitfarms’ Board about a potential merger between our companies. Regrettably, it appears that good-faith negotiations cannot be achieved until there is substantial transformation within Bitfarms’ boardroom. This was stated in a press release by Riot on Monday.

The miner is putting forward the names of John Delaney, Amy Freedman, and Ralph Goehring for consideration as new members on the Bitfarms board, replacing the current incumbents.

Riot, holding a significant 14.9% stake in Bitfarms, has initiated a call for a special shareholder meeting with the intention of ousting Bitfarms’ Chairman and interim CEO Nicolas Bonta, director Andrés Finkielsztain, and any future appointees to replace co-founder Emiliano Grodzki. Additionally, Riot plans to propose the removal of any new directors appointed by the current board following this announcement.

Last month, it was revealed that Riot had made a hostile takeover offer to purchase Bitfarms for $2.30 per share. This proposal was met with swift rejection by Bitfarms. In response, Riot escalated its efforts by acquiring more shares of its rival, aiming to put pressure on the board and initiate negotiations. However, Bitfarms countered this move by enacting a shareholder rights plan or “poison pill,” designed to thwart Riot’s attempts to gain controlling ownership.

Riot intends to carry on with its attempt to acquire more shares, as this merger would result in the biggest publicly traded Bitcoin mining company, boasting robust prospects for future expansion.

On Monday, Bitfarms’ shares experienced a significant drop of over 6%. Despite this, the stock currently trades above its $2.30 per share buyout proposal, suggesting that investors continue to view BITF as a possible acquisition target. Riot’s shares saw minimal decreases, with the decline mirroring bitcoin’s own 3% decrease within the past 24 hours.