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MIAMI — For the mining industry, Bitcoin 2022 was a moment to take center stage after spending previous conferences more in the shadows. The sector took over almost half the exhibition space at the show, and there were plenty of lively discussions on mining with packed audiences.
Throughout the week, new mining rigs were unveiled, long lines of visitors were seen at the booths of mining services firms and some of the larger mining companies said they had their people sniffing around for deals.
In addition, Wall Street investment firms and financial institutions such as B. Riley, HC Wainwright and BNY Mellon (BK) hosted events to schmooze with miners, and the week’s mining parties were buzzing with attendees from pools to venture capitalists. There were even some deals that were announced during the week, including Applied Blockchains's filing for a mining initial public offering (IPO) and Core Scientific's (CORZ) $75 million debt transaction.
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A buzz around mining
“Last year, it wasn't that [mining] was an afterthought, but it didn't have nearly the pull or the promotion from the conference,” Whit Gibbs, the founder and CEO of bitcoin (BTC) mining and services company Compass Mining, told CoinDesk from the exhibition floor. “And this year … they promoted [the mining stage], they've got speakers that are more engaging, drawing in the crowds. It's been great,” he said.
Compass Mining’s booth was abuzz with conference goers, with Gibbs having to pause our interview several times to greet them – a common occurrence at many mining-related company booths this year.
And there were plenty of them, including the top three mining rig makers, at least four providers of immersion cooling, three to four energy services providers marketing their environmentally friendly solutions and three miners serving retail clients. There were also several other new mining rig manufacturers on the floor.
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“Competition is going to make everything better for the consumers when it comes to mining services,” noted Compass’ Gibbs.
‘A real deal center’
Interestingly, the actual mining companies were noticeably absent from the exhibition floor, with the exception of Nevada-based miner CleanSpark (CLSK), which had a booth by the main entrance.
They may have been too busy meeting with their Wall Street friends to raise capital, as there were a plethora of cocktail parties and private dinners bringing together the two sides throughout the week.