Bitfarms co-founder and chairman Nicolas Bonta is stepping down from the board instantly amid the continued struggle in opposition to Riot Platforms‘ hostile takeover bid, in accordance with an Aug. 13 assertion.
Bonta is considered one of three board members Riot goals to exchange within the upcoming October shareholder vote.
Management change
In response to Bonta’s departure, Brian Howlett, the lead director, will assume the position of unbiased chairman. Ben Gagnon will step in as the brand new CEO and be a part of the board.
Moreover, Liam Wilson will change into the Chief Working Officer (COO) on Aug. 26.
Edie Hofmeister, Chair of the Governance and Nominating Committee, emphasised that Bitfarms’ Board is devoted to constructing the appropriate group to implement its strategic plan and create long-term worth for its shareholders. He added:
“The Bitfarms Board is targeted on making certain the Firm has the appropriate group to supervise and implement the Firm’s strategic plan to ship worth within the near- and long-term.”
Bitfarms’ management modifications come at an important time, as the corporate faces aggressive acquisition makes an attempt from Riot.
In April, Riot first tried to purchase Bitfarms for about $950 million, however the provide was rejected as a result of it undervalued the corporate.
Since then, Riot has change into a big Bitfarms shareholder via important share acquisitions, reaching 15.9%. It has additionally criticized Bitfarms’ governance and known as for the elimination of the corporate’s board, which it claims prioritized the administrators’ pursuits over these of shareholders.
Income declined in Q2
These management modifications got here lower than per week after the Bitcoin miners revealed that their whole income had dropped to $42 million, a 16% lower from the primary quarter.
The corporate attributed the decline to decreased block rewards after Bitcoin’s halving occasion in April. This 12 months’s occasion slashed miners’ block rewards to three.125 BTC per block, down from 6.25 BTC.
Moreover, Bitfarms reported working losses of $23.6 million, which included $46 million in accelerated depreciation on outdated mining gear.
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