For miners that once championed a ‘never sell’ ethos, the calculus is shifting as MARA Holdings disclosed in its latest annual filing that it would allow the sale of its bitcoin.

MARA said in a filing that they expanded their crypto management strategy for 2026 to permit sales of bitcoin held on its balance sheet. This shift builds on the company’s 2025 policy that allowed sales only from newly mined production, marking a break from the long-standing practice of treating mined bitcoin as a long-term treasury reserve.

As of Dec. 31, 2025, MARA held 53,822 bitcoin valued at about $4.7 billion based on a year-end spot price of $87,498. During the year, the company recorded a $422.2 million decrease in the fair value of its holdings as bitcoin prices fluctuated. 

The filing shows that about 28% of its bitcoin was deployed in lending, trading, or collateral arrangements, including 9,377 bitcoin loaned to counterparties and 5,938 bitcoin pledged against $350 million in outstanding credit facilities.

Those lending activities generated $32.1 million in interest income, according to the filing. 

The policy revision gives MARA flexibility to buy or sell BTC depending on market conditions and capital allocation priorities. It does not require immediate liquidation, but it introduces a formal framework for tapping reserves that were once considered untouchable.

MARA operates roughly 490,000 mining rigs and reported 66.4 exahashes per second of energized hashrate at year-end 2025. Total energy capacity stood near 1.9 gigawatts, with purchased energy costs reaching $179.0 million during the year. 

The company mined 8,799 bitcoin in 2025, down from 9,430 in 2024, reflecting the impact of the April 2024 halving and rising network difficulty.

The move comes as miners face tighter economics. Revenue remains tied to bitcoin’s market price, while costs such as electricity, infrastructure, and financing remain fixed or rising. Holding large BTC treasuries can amplify gains in bull markets but also magnify balance sheet pressure during downturns.

MARA is also advancing plans to develop data centers tailored for artificial intelligence and high-performance computing workloads. The company has described its power-rich sites as suited for customers that require consistent access to energy at scale. Such projects demand significant capital and long-term planning, factors that can make treasury monetization an appealing source of funding.

Core Scientific is hopping on the bitcoin selling band-wagon

The shift is not isolated. Core Scientific said this week that it expects to monetize substantially all of its bitcoin holdings in 2026 as part of a broader transition toward AI and high-density colocation services. 

In January, the company sold about 1,900 BTC for approximately $175 million, implying an average price near $92,000 per coin. At the end of 2025, it held 2,537 bitcoin worth $222 million.

Core Scientific has indicated that its mining segment is being maintained primarily to meet power commitments while sites are converted into facilities designed to support AI and other compute-intensive workloads. 

The company ended 2025 with about $530 million in liquidity and outlined multibillion-dollar financing potential tied to data center contracts.

Selling BTC can reduce reliance on equity issuance or additional borrowing, especially in a higher-rate environment. It also gives a company more cash on hand.

The trade-off diminishes direct exposure to bitcoin’s upside, a feature that has historically attracted investors to publicly traded miners.

As the industry adapts to post-halving economics and rising network competition, treasury strategy has become central to the conversation. 

The decision to hold, lend, pledge, or sell BTC now sits alongside choices about power procurement, site development, and expansion into adjacent compute markets.

At the time of writing, BTC is trading below $67,000 after briefly topping $70,000 yesterday. The current price is $66,741.91.

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