Horizon Kinetics to launch new Bitcoin mining firm

Horizon Kinetics is set to capitalise on Bitcoin’s increasing popularity by launching a new mining company.

Formed in 1994, the investment management firm oversees $7bn worth of assets and, according to Chief Operating Officer Alun Williams, investors pushed for this latest development.

Having set up its first mining company in 2017 – HK Cryptocurrency Mining – and the second in 2018 (HK Cryptocurrency Mining 2), Williams said the venture became a ‘good profitable proposition’ and the decision to start the company was built around the desire to know more about the industry.

“That company was started to really learn the infrastructure behind our direct investments in Bitcoin,” he said.

“We felt that we really couldn’t understand Bitcoin without understanding mining as well because they are so closely tied to each other.”

Horizon Kinetics will combine its two mining companies to form ‘Consensus Mining & Seigniorage Corporation’, and do a direct listing with an over-the-counter (OTC) market that Williams says will improve the firm in time.

“We operate in a very different way in a very deliberate and methodical deployment of our capital to make sure we’re not putting our investors’ capital at risk, but also improving and growing it over time,” he added.

US mining market

The company currently runs a few thousand Bitcoin miners and will consider employing more due to the merging of the two mining companies, according to Kevin McRae, Horizon Kinetics’ director of technology and chief information security officer.

The United States is the number one market for Bitcoin miners in the world, particularly after the migration of miners from China following the ban on crypto mining in June.

According to a survey organised by Foundry USA – a financing and advisory company – New York’s hash rate stood at almost 20%, while the hash rate of Texas’ stood at just 14%.

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