VanEck: Bitcoin Miners Face a $50 Billion Short-Term Funding Gap in AI Transition

Huo Xing Cai Jing reports, according to CoinDesk, that VanEck has released a report stating that Bitcoin mining companies transitioning to AI infrastructure face a short-term funding gap of approximately $50 billion and a long-term capital requirement of about $221 billion. Analysts note that market focus is shifting from contract signings to execution risk, with the industry currently delivering only about 25% of leased AI and high-performance computing capacity; companies missing construction milestones face “structural downgrades” from investors. Bitcoin mining companies, facing declining profitability from mining, are pivoting toward AI infrastructure—Core Scientific has signed multi-billion-dollar托管 agreements with CoreWeave, while TeraWulf, Hut 8, Iren, and Cipher have also announced AI and high-performance computing initiatives. VanEck points out that the clearest current valuation metric is available operational power infrastructure, with companies holding AI leases trading at valuation multiples more than 10 times higher than those based solely on operational power. The report identifies Hive, Bitdeer, Keel, and IREN as having potential upside, while MARA, CLSK, and RIOT remain more closely tied to Bitcoin’s price.