Marathon and Hut 8 scoop up $1.6 billion worth of Bitcoin during market dip

Bitcoin mining giants Marathon Digital Holdings and Hut 8 have capitalized on Bitcoin’s recent correction by making multi-billion-dollar investments in the flagship cryptocurrency.

On Dec. 19, the companies announced purchases totaling over 16,000 BTC for $1.6 billion, equivalent to 37 days of Bitcoin issuance.

Marathon led the way by purchasing 15,574 BTC at an average price of $98,529 per coin, investing approximately $1.53 billion. This addition increased the company’s Bitcoin holdings to 44,394 BTC, worth $4.45 billion at the current spot price of $100,151.

Marathon is the second-largest publicly traded Bitcoin holder, behind only MicroStrategy, which holds 439,000 BTC.

Meanwhile, Hut 8 acquired 990 BTC for $100 million, paying an average of $101,710 per Bitcoin. This transaction raised Hut 8’s total Bitcoin reserves to 10,096 BTC. The company now holds more Bitcoin than Tesla and is the fourth public company to hold more than 10,000 Bitcoin on its balance sheet.

These investments came on the heels of a sharp market decline spurred by a US Federal Reserve rate adjustment. Bitcoin’s value dropped by more than 5%, hitting a low of $96,781 before recovering to $98,750, according to CryptoSlate’s data.