Autor Cointelegraph By Sam Bourgi

Bitcoin mining companies expanding into artificial intelligence and high-performance computing face sharply different borrowing costs as lenders scrutinize large-scale data center projects, adding to the industry’s growing financing challenges.According to the latest Miner Weekly newsletter from BlocksBridge Consulting, securing major AI customers has only been part of the challenge for miners. Companies must also raise billions of dollars to purchase computing equipment, build facilities and secure the power infrastructure needed to fulfill their contracts.“[B]ig lenders have become more selective about data center loans and decisions increasingly depend on the customer, the contract and the path to completion,” BlocksBridge said.IREN, which has expanded from Bitcoin mining into AI infrastructure, illustrates the differences in financing costs. The company secured a $3.65 billion GPU financing package in June at a blended interest rate of 6%, followed by a separate $2.4 billion financing arrangement in August at a fixed rate of 9%. The two agreements cover different projects, so they’re not directly comparable, but they show how borrowing costs can vary even within the same company.Financing arrangements can also carry costs beyond interest payments. In a separate transaction involving Cipher Digital, Google agreed to backstop $1.4 billion in lease obligations in exchange for warrants representing 5.4% of Cipher’s equity, subject to certain adjustments. Exercising those warrants could dilute existing shareholders.The financing requirements highlight a broader challenge for Bitcoin miners entering the AI market. Even companies with multibillion-dollar customer contracts may need substantial additional capital before their data centers become operational.Related: Hut 8, IREN deals lift AI-focused Bitcoin mining stocksBitcoin miners face massive AI funding gapThe differences in financing costs come as Bitcoin miners take on billions of dollars in debt to fund their AI expansion plans. At the height of the Bitcoin bull market last October, VanEck data showed that miners’ debt had surged roughly 500% from the second quarter of 2024.Ironically, capital requirements have continued to grow during the Bitcoin bear market as miners shift away from BTC mining amid deteriorating economics. A June 2026 analysis by BlocksBridge Consulting, citing VanEck data, estimated that publicly traded Bitcoin miners needed roughly $50 billion to complete their planned AI infrastructure projects, including a $21.1 billion funding gap at IREN alone.Riot Platforms and HIVE Digital also face substantial funding requirements, estimated at $7.2 billion and $4.6 billion, respectively.Related: Crypto Biz: Wealthy investors are buying crypto, but their advisers aren’t sold

Affluent investors appear increasingly comfortable with crypto, even if their financial advisers aren’t keeping pace. A new CoinShares survey found that a majority of wealthy investors across seven major economies already own digital assets, with many planning to increase their exposure this year.The findings come as capital continues to move into crypto in other ways, even against a tougher market backdrop. Bitcoin is trying to build on its best quarter since 2017 while Treasury yields remain above 5%, and OKX has raised additional funding at a $25 billion valuation.Meanwhile, Strategy is putting more capital into its preferred stock. The company spent more than six times as much buying back STRC shares last week as it did buying Bitcoin.Bitcoin’s rally runs into a 5% Treasury marketBitcoin is coming off its best third quarter since 2017, but extending the rally could prove difficult as Treasury yields above 5% give investors an increasingly attractive alternative to risk assets, according to Delphi Digital.Delphi pointed to Bitcoin’s 43% third-quarter gain and third consecutive weekly advance, but warned that “the grind higher is happening against real resistance.” This resistance includes the Federal Reserve’s September rate hike and Treasury yields at multi-decade highs.  However, Vanessa Grellet of Arche Capital noted that the debasement trade, which favors scarce assets such as Bitcoin and gold as a hedge against the declining purchasing power of fiat currencies, does not depend on low interest rates. The outlook for rates has shifted since then. September payrolls showed just 29,000 jobs added, well below forecasts of 80,000, sharply lowering the odds of an October rate hike, according to CME FedWatch. New York Fed President John Williams also said there was no urgency to raise rates again.For now, elevated Treasury yields remain a hurdle for risk assets. Bitcoin briefly climbed above $87,000 last week before pulling back to below $83,000 on Wednesday.Affluent investors are moving faster on crypto than their advisersA majority of affluent investors across seven major economies hold digital assets, with crypto accounting for about 10% of their portfolios on average, according to a new CoinShares survey.The survey covered 2,230 investors with at least $500,000 in investable assets across the US, UK, France, Germany, Italy, Sweden and Switzerland. Crypto ownership ranged from 54% in Sweden to roughly 70% in the US, UK, Germany and Switzerland. In five of the seven countries, at least 85% of existing crypto investors said they planned to increase their exposure in 2026.Investors appear more comfortable with crypto than some of their financial advisers. About four in 10 respondents in Switzerland, France, the US and Germany who worked with an adviser described them as overly cautious about digital assets.Ric Edelman, founder of the Digital Assets Council of Financial Professionals, questioned the survey’s finding that crypto accounts for 10% of the average portfolio, saying his research suggests current allocations of 2% to 5% are more common. Even so, Edelman recommends much larger allocations of 10% to 40%, depending on an investor’s risk tolerance.OKX extends funding round at $25 billion valuationOKX raised an undisclosed amount at a $25 billion valuation, extending a funding round that brought in $200 million from Intercontinental Exchange in March.Existing partners and investors participated in the extension, including Standard Chartered’s SC Ventures, Qube Research & Technologies, Ripple and stablecoin issuer Circle. OKX did not disclose how much it raised in the latest round.The funding comes as OKX moves further into traditional financial markets. On Monday, an OKX-ICE joint venture filed with the US Securities and Exchange Commission to launch a tokenized stock trading platform under the agency’s new innovation exemption. The platform’s launch remains subject to the filing and exemption.Strategy spends six times more on STRC buybacks than BitcoinStrategy spent $176.3 million repurchasing 1.77 million STRC shares last week, more than six times the $28.7 million it spent buying 334 Bitcoin.The purchase brought Strategy’s holdings to exactly 848,000 BTC, according to a Monday 8-K filing with the SEC. Bitcoin accumulation has slowed considerably, with Strategy’s holdings rising just 0.2% in the third quarter after 7,218 BTC in purchases were partly offset by the sale of 5,553 BTC.STRC, meanwhile, has recovered to near its $100 par value. The shares were trading around $99.53 after falling to roughly $75 in late June.Strategy also filed a proxy seeking shareholder approval to pay dividends daily on STRC, STRF, STRK and STRD. STRC currently pays dividends twice monthly, while the other three pay quarterly. Shareholders are scheduled to vote on the proposal on Oct. 28.If approved, daily STRC dividends would begin in November, followed by STRF, STRK and STRD in January. Strategy said the changes would not affect dividend rates or its overall payment obligations, but could affect reinvestment delays, liquidity and price stability.Crypto Biz is your weekly pulse on the business behind blockchain and crypto, delivered directly to your inbox every Thursday.

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Cointelegraph is committed to providing independent, high-quality journalism across the crypto, blockchain, AI, and fintech industries.All news, reviews, and analyses are produced with full journalistic independence and integrity. For more details on our standards and processes, please read our Editorial Policy.

Shares of tokenization platform Securitize rallied sharply on Tuesday after the company announced a partnership with South Korean technology company LG CNS as the country prepares to introduce a new framework for tokenized securities.Securitize (SECZ) rose nearly 8% in early Tuesday trading to around $12.60, outperforming most major crypto-linked stocks, before pulling back later in the morning. The company began trading on the New York Stock Exchange in July after completing its merger with special purpose acquisition company Cantor Equity Partners II.Securitize Corp (SECZ) stock. Source: Yahoo FinanceSecuritize and LG CNS signed a memorandum of understanding to develop tokenized assets and digital asset infrastructure for South Korean financial institutions. The companies said the partnership will explore tokenized funds, stocks and stablecoins, while also identifying opportunities across the broader Asia-Pacific market.The agreement comes as South Korea prepares to implement a new framework for tokenized securities. Last week, the country’s Financial Services Commission proposed rules governing the issuance and circulation of tokenized stocks, bonds, funds and other securities, with the framework set to take effect in February 2027.The partnership potentially gives Securitize an early foothold in South Korea as financial institutions prepare for the new regime. LG CNS also launched a blockchain infrastructure platform on Tuesday designed to help banks and other financial companies support stablecoins and tokenized securities.Related: Securitize, Cantor target tokenized IPOs for public marketsStocks emerge as the next major tokenization marketSecuritize has become a major player in the tokenized real-world asset market, which has grown to roughly $40 billion. Much of the early growth centered on US Treasurys, private credit and other yield-bearing assets, but tokenized stocks are beginning to gain ground.The market for tokenized stocks has repeatedly hit record highs as exchanges and financial institutions explore bringing traditional equities onchain. Tokenized equities were valued at roughly $3.2 billion, up 10.6% over the past 30 days, according to RWA.xyz data.Securitize CEO Carlos Domingo has argued that even modest adoption could have a much larger impact on crypto markets. Speaking at ETHConf in July, Domingo said tokenized stocks could help push the overall crypto market to a $5 trillion valuation.Related: Crypto’s billions are back, but the premiums aren’t