Public Keys offers a weekly summary from Decrypt, highlighting prominent publicly traded cryptocurrency firms. This week includes: Circle ventures into the IPO market with a partnership setback from Coinbase, MicroStrategy approaches the 3% threshold, Bakkt faces new challenges, and Decrypt journalist Matt Di Salvo discusses the potential need for a wellness check on mid-tier Bitcoin miners in the upcoming months.
Is Circle back in the game?
Circle, the issuer of USDC, is back in the spotlight, having filed for a public offering earlier this week.
Investors were particularly intrigued by how much revenue Circle generates for crypto exchange Coinbase, which receives half of all excess earnings from Circle’s cash reserves that support its stablecoin.
Analysts at Ledger Insights suggested that this dynamic could deter investors.
“Circle incurred over a billion in distribution expenses in 2024, predominantly going to Coinbase,” they stated. “The primary concern is whether this could limit future opportunities.”
Currently, anonymous sources have informed Bloomberg that Circle is contemplating postponing its IPO shortly after its announcement.
The Wall Street Journal confirmed that Circle is indeed delaying filings and extending its IPO timeframe. This doesn’t indicate that Circle won’t go public; rather, it may take longer due to current market conditions and potential tariffs from Trump.
Perhaps the company is negotiating better terms with Coinbase to lure potential investors.
Is a 3% holding imminent?
It took MicroStrategy four years to obtain 1% of the total Bitcoin supply, a milestone it achieved last year. By December, the company quickly ramped up its holdings to 2%.
Currently, MicroStrategy’s extensive Bitcoin treasury comprises 2.5% of the BTC supply, putting it halfway towards the 3% mark.
To reach this next threshold, MicroStrategy, trading under the MSTR ticker on Nasdaq, would need to acquire an additional 101,815 Bitcoin. Closing this gap at current market prices would require an investment of around $8.5 billion.
This isn’t unrealistic; the company spent over $288 billion on Bitcoin last year and has nearly matched that figure thus far. In Q1 of 2025, they’ve already outlaid $282 billion on Bitcoin purchases.
The firm’s treasury of 528,185 Bitcoin was acquired at an average cost of $67,458, currently valued at $43.9 billion—yielding a 23.2% unrealized profit. This stockpile represents 60% of MicroStrategy’s $72.9 billion market cap.
Troubles for Bakkt
Recently, Bakkt Holdings faced both setbacks and a possible opportunity.
The company’s crypto services arm lost two significant clients—Webull and Bank of America. However, Bakkt assured investors that a new co-CEO would soon launch a stablecoin service.
Still, some investors believe Bakkt may have breached SEC regulations by misrepresenting the reliability and diversity of its crypto revenue.
A class action lawsuit was filed on Wednesday in Manhattan, with shareholders accusing Bakkt and its executives of making “materially false and/or misleading statements” regarding the firm’s crypto revenue.
“Webull constituted 74% of Bakkt’s crypto services revenue,” the lawsuit noted, highlighting that at this time, the company derived 98% of its income from crypto services.
The lead plaintiff, Guy Serge A. Frankin, was a staunch supporter of Bakkt, acquiring 8,812 shares for $191,419.82 since June 2024.
This translates to an average purchase price of $21.72 per share. However, with the current stock price at $7.98 (traded on NYSE under the BKKT ticker), his investment has incurred an unrealized loss of $121,100.06. That’s a harsh reality.
Challenges for midsize Bitcoin miners
As both U.S. equities and cryptocurrency markets face sell-offs, shares of major Bitcoin mining firms have declined significantly amid the escalation of President Trump’s trade war.
Notable American Nasdaq-listed miners like Marathon Digital (MARA), Riot Platforms, and Bitdeer have seen their shares drop by 9-13% over the past week.
Others, including Hive Digital, Cleanspark, and Core Scientific, have also faced declines, though to a lesser extent.
This sell-off underscores that no sector is shielded from current market volatility. Last month was recorded as the worst for 14 leading public Bitcoin miners monitored by JP Morgan, who reported a combined loss of 25%—approximately $6 billion—from their market capitalization in March.
Moreover, there may not be a clear path to recovery. Decrypt attended the recent Mining Disrupt conference, where Shanon Squires, chief revenue officer at Compass Mining, mentioned that mid-sized companies in this sector may face the steepest challenges.
“Mid-sized public companies could struggle due to the added costs of being publicly traded, coupled with low hash prices that make transitions arduous,” he elaborated, indicating that the industry could resemble the oil and gas sector, predicting further consolidation through mergers and acquisitions.
Other Headlines
- Bitcoin mining by the Trumps: Eric and Donald Trump Jr. are venturing into Bitcoin mining, forging a partnership with Hut 8, a Miami-based miner. This echoes President Trump’s prior comments about Bitcoin mined in America.
- Hold on to your DOGE: While Tesla holds $964 million in Bitcoin, it’s not strictly a crypto stock. However, TSLA shares and Bitcoin briefly rallied Wednesday amid rumors of Elon Musk potentially leaving the Department of Government Efficiency. Those hopes quickly faded as the White House clarified that Musk would only leave once his work with DOGE is complete. Currently, TSLA shares trade at $241.78, down 9.5% for the day.
Contributions to this report were made by Decrypt reporter Matt Di Salvo.
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