Bitcoin mining stock prices were in free fall with the wider market on Thursday, with many marquee names down double digits as the market reckons with the Federal Reserve’s decisions to keep rates unchanged on Wednesday. In the hours after market open, bitcoin mining stocks that have been expanding into AI and pure-play bitcoin miners alike fell precipitously. Among the hardest hit were Cipher Mining (-9%), CleanSpark (-7.6%), TeraWulf (-7.3%), HIVE (-7.1%), Cango (-6.4%), IREN (-6.3%), Riot (-6.6%), and ...

Core Viewpoint - A noticeable split is forming within the technology sector, with blockchain and digital asset companies significantly outperforming traditional tech leaders in early 2026 [1] Performance Comparison - The Amplify Blockchain Technology ETF (BLOK) has increased by 11.78% year-to-date as of January 27, 2026, while the State Street Technology Select Sector SPDR ETF (XLK) has only risen by 2.83% during the same period [1] Reasons for BLOK's Outperformance - BLOK's active management and exposure to dynamic segments of the digital asset market contribute to its strong performance [1] - The crypto market revival, particularly the renewed strength of Bitcoin and Ethereum, has positively impacted companies supporting the crypto ecosystem [1] - BLOK includes companies applying blockchain technology to enterprise use cases, which are seeing growing institutional adoption [1] - Unlike XLK, BLOK has a broader exposure to smaller, faster-growing companies, reducing concentration risk and allowing individual winners to significantly impact performance [1] Key Holdings Contributing to BLOK's Performance - Cipher Mining (CIFR) - 3.73% weight, focused on industrial-scale bitcoin mining [1] - Robinhood Markets (HOOD) - 3.74% weight, benefiting from increased retail crypto trading volumes [1] - CleanSpark (CLSK) - 3.77% weight, known for sustainable bitcoin mining practices [1] - Hut 8 Corp. (HUT) - 4.08% weight, expanding into high-performance computing and AI data center hosting [1] - Galaxy Digital (GLXY) - 5.00% weight, providing investment banking and asset management services in the digital asset space [1] Key Themes to Monitor - Mining stocks are a major performance driver, with three of the top five holdings directly tied to bitcoin production [1] - Companies like Hut 8 and Galaxy Digital are diversifying into AI infrastructure and data center services, adding a second growth narrative [1] - BLOK's active management strategy allows it to focus on outperforming infrastructure plays while capping individual positions around 5%, avoiding top-heavy exposure typical of traditional tech ETFs [1]

Group 1 - Cipher Mining Inc. (NASDAQ:CIFR) experienced a share price increase of 13.71% to $18.75, driven by investor interest in high-performance computing (HPC) operators, particularly following Nvidia's increased investments in the sector [1][4] - Nvidia announced a $2 billion acquisition of a stake in CoreWeave Inc., a prominent data center and HPC services provider, to support the growing AI industry, indicating strong confidence in the sector despite concerns about an AI bubble [2] - Cipher Mining received a price target upgrade of 69% to $22 from Keefe, Bruyette and Woods, maintaining an "outperform" rating, reflecting the company's effective execution of its AI colocation strategy [3][4] Group 2 - The positive sentiment around Cipher Mining is shared with other companies in the sector, such as Applied Digital Corp., IREN Ltd., and TeraWulf Inc., indicating a broader trend in the HPC and AI investment landscape [3]

Group 1 - Anthropic, the creator of AI chatbot Claude, is set to raise $20 billion in fresh investment, valuing the company at $350 billion [1] - The initial target for the investment round was $10 billion, indicating a higher demand for AI investments than expected [1] - The funding round is expected to deliver between $10 to $15 billion as early as Tuesday, with the remainder to be finalized in the coming weeks [2] Group 2 - The deal is led by Singaporean sovereign wealth fund GIC and U.S. investor Coatue, with significant contributions from Sequoia Capital [2] - Companies pivoting towards AI and high-performance computing, such as IREN and Cipher Mining, are experiencing significant stock gains, with increases of over 12% [3] - Microsoft and Nvidia have previously committed to investing $10 billion and $5 billion, respectively, into Anthropic [4]

Core Insights - Bitcoin miners are diversifying into high-performance computing (HPC) and AI, with TeraWulf and Applied Digital showing significant gains of 10% and 9.69% respectively over the past week [1][2] Company Performance - TeraWulf (NASDAQ: WULF) shares opened at $14.65, reflecting a 10.07% increase over the last five trading sessions [1] - Applied Digital (NASDAQ: APLD) began trading at $39.95, marking a 9.69% weekly gain [1] - Core Scientific (NASDAQ: CORZ) outperformed with shares at $19.39, a 4.75% increase over the week [2] - Hut 8 (NASDAQ: HUT) shares opened at $57.35, down 2.93% over the last five days, with plans for a 500-megawatt facility in Illinois [4] - CleanSpark (NASDAQ: CLSK) shares opened at $12.64, down 0.75% week-over-week, with J.P. Morgan maintaining an Overweight rating due to its strategic land acquisitions [5] - Bitdeer (NASDAQ: BTDR) experienced a significant weekly loss of 7.37%, launching its NVIDIA infrastructure in Malaysia [6] - HIVE Digital (NASDAQ: HIVE) announced plans to expand operations in Paraguay by 100 megawatts and launched a new AI cloud platform, with shares down 7.74% week-over-week [6] - Cipher Mining (NASDAQ: CIFR) shares stood at $17.37, down 5.03% for the week [7] - Bitfarms (NASDAQ: BITF) traded at $2.56, down 6.23% [7] - MARA Holdings (NASDAQ: MARA) opened at $10.11, reflecting a 3.81% decline [7] - IREN (NASDAQ: IREN) began the day at $54.91, down 1.86% [7] Market Trends - The broader sector is experiencing mixed momentum, with some companies like TeraWulf and Applied Digital outperforming while others like Riot Platforms and HIVE Digital are facing losses [1][2]

Core Viewpoint - The CoinShares Bitcoin Mining ETF (WGMI) is highlighted as a significant investment opportunity due to its strong performance and growing interest among financial advisors in cryptocurrency equity exposure [2][3][5]. Performance Summary - WGMI has shown impressive returns: up over 300% in 2023, 72.5% in 2025, and 23.5% in 2024, with a current year-to-date increase of more than 33% [6][18]. - The fund is recognized as one of the best-performing non-leveraged ETFs, indicating strong market demand for crypto mining investments [5][6]. Advisor Insights - Financial advisors are increasingly favoring crypto equity ETFs like WGMI over direct cryptocurrency exposure, reflecting a shift in investment strategies [3][4]. - A recent survey indicated that advisors see crypto equity as a promising area for investment in the coming year [2][3]. Risk and Diversification - WGMI is characterized as a high-risk, high-reward investment, suitable for those willing to accept volatility in exchange for potential returns [7][9][13]. - The fund provides diversification by holding a portfolio of several dozen individual mining stocks, which can mitigate some risks associated with individual companies [9][17]. Expense Ratio and Management - The fund has an expense ratio of 0.75%, which is considered moderate for thematic ETFs, and investors are willing to accept this due to the expertise of CoinShares in the crypto space [14][15][16]. - The management emphasizes the importance of understanding the fee structure in relation to the fund's performance [16]. Long-term Expectations - Investors are advised to manage expectations regarding future performance, as past returns may not be indicative of future results [19][21]. - The potential for continued growth in cryptocurrency demand is highlighted, but investors should be prepared for possible downturns [20][21].

Core Insights - The investment by Nvidia in CoreWeave highlights the increasing demand for high-performance computing in AI applications, while also presenting challenges for independent bitcoin miners transitioning to AI infrastructure [1][3] - Shares of bitcoin miners like Cipher Mining, CleanSpark, IREN, and TeraWulf fell between 5% and 9% due to concerns that CoreWeave's dominance in the AI infrastructure market could limit growth opportunities for other miners [2] - CoreWeave's market capitalization of $53 billion is already half of the peak valuation of the entire bitcoin-AI mining sector, indicating significant competitive pressure on smaller players [3] Market Reactions - The decline in shares of bitcoin miners signals a commitment between Nvidia and CoreWeave, with GPU resources increasingly allocated to this partnership, potentially reducing funding opportunities for independent miners [3] - CleanSpark's shares dropped about 9% due to perceived outage risks related to its Tennessee operations and governance concerns stemming from a substantial CEO pay package [5] - Core Scientific and Hut 8 are exceptions, with Core Scientific's shares rising nearly 2% and Hut 8's shares increasing by 0.2%, as both companies have diversified into AI hosting and high-performance computing [6][7] Industry Trends - The shift towards AI by bitcoin miners is not new, as they have been repurposing their data centers for more profitable workloads amid shrinking mining rewards and rising power costs [8] - Nvidia's recent actions suggest that resources may increasingly be directed towards larger, more integrated players like CoreWeave, compelling smaller firms to adapt or consolidate [8] - The industry is showing signs of inevitable consolidation as it matures, indicating a potential shift in competitive dynamics [4]

Group 1 - IREN, Cipher Mining, and Cleanspark are identified as the three Bitcoin stocks to watch, based on their high trading volume in recent days [2] - "Bitcoin stocks" are defined as shares of publicly traded companies closely tied to Bitcoin, including cryptocurrency miners, exchanges, or firms holding significant amounts of Bitcoin [2] - These stocks provide investors with indirect exposure to Bitcoin price movements while also carrying unique operational and regulatory risks [2] Group 2 - IREN Limited, formerly Iris Energy Limited, operates bitcoin mining data centers and is headquartered in Sydney, Australia [3] - Cipher Mining is another company involved in the Bitcoin sector, although specific details about its operations are not provided in the text [3] - CleanSpark, Inc. is a bitcoin miner in the Americas, focusing on low-carbon power for its data centers, and was previously known as Stratean Inc. [3]

Core Insights - VanEck Bitcoin ETF (HODL) provides direct exposure to Bitcoin, while CoinShares Bitcoin Mining ETF (WGMI) targets the broader Bitcoin mining ecosystem, highlighting differences in cost, risk profile, and diversification [2][3] Fund Comparison - HODL is a single-asset fund backed by Bitcoin, aiming to mirror its price, whereas WGMI holds a diversified portfolio of companies involved in Bitcoin mining and related services [3][6] - HODL has an expense ratio of 0.20% and $1.4 billion in assets under management (AUM), while WGMI has a higher expense ratio of 0.75% and $355.7 million in AUM [4][5] Performance Metrics - As of January 9, 2026, HODL has a 1-year return of -15.1%, while WGMI has significantly outperformed with a return of 84.0% [4][8] - WGMI has a beta of 6.01, indicating higher volatility compared to HODL, which does not have a beta value reported [4] Portfolio Composition - WGMI's portfolio consists of 81% in financials, 18% in technology, and 1% in utilities, with key holdings including IREN, Cipher Mining, and Hut 8 [6] - HODL exclusively holds Bitcoin, making it highly sensitive to Bitcoin's price movements, with no sector diversification [7] Investment Implications - Cryptocurrency ETFs like HODL and WGMI are relatively new and come with extreme volatility, necessitating careful consideration by investors [8] - WGMI's diversified portfolio may appeal to those seeking exposure to the Bitcoin mining sector, while HODL is suited for investors looking for direct Bitcoin investment [8]

Core Insights - AI chips are essential for the AI boom, but AI data centers are also critical for handling intense workloads, leading to investment opportunities like Cipher Mining [1][3] - Cipher Mining has pivoted to AI infrastructure, signing long-term deals with major tech companies, positioning itself for long-term growth [1][7] Group 1: Cipher Mining's Position and Growth - Cipher Mining has signed a 15-year deal with Amazon valued at $5.5 billion, totaling 300 megawatts, and has over 3 gigawatts in its pipeline [7] - The company also secured a 10-year deal with Fluidstack, which is backed by Google, further solidifying its market position [7] - Demand for U.S. AI data center gigawatts is projected to increase by more than 30-fold by 2035, indicating significant growth potential for Cipher Mining [8] Group 2: Regulatory Environment and Competitive Landscape - A recent ruling by the Environmental Protection Agency regarding xAI's Memphis data center presents a tailwind for Cipher Mining, as it relies on renewable energy and complies with environmental regulations [4][5] - The ruling poses challenges for competitors using gas turbines, potentially leading xAI to seek additional capacity from Cipher Mining [6] - The increasing regulatory scrutiny on gas-powered AI data centers may create further opportunities for Cipher Mining as it positions itself as a compliant alternative [5][6]