For Bitcoin Exposure, Invest in a RIOT
Plus, Biden Crypto Order, and Bitcoin Miami '22 Agenda
Riot Blockchain an Easy Option for Bitcoin Newbies
Publicly-held Riot Blockchain, Inc. (RIOT) announced their 2021 financial results on Wednesday, and their was plenty to be optimistic about. The company focuses on Bitcoin mining, mainly in North America. The company reported record results in many categories.
RIOT increased total revenue in 2021 by 1,665%, from $12.1 million to $213.2 million. That’s not a jump that you see very often. Earnings before interest and taxes (EBITDA) increased to a record $82.4 million.
Increased the amount of Bitcoin held on the balance sheet, from 1,078 coins to 4,844. Those Bitcoins have a current market value of around $195,000,000.
Increased their hashing capacity by 444% by adding 82,500 Bitmain Antminers. The new hardware is expected to produce another 300% increase in hashing power in 2022.
Sure, with Bitcoin’s price drop this year, RIOT has fallen off sharply to about $16 per share. However, Yahoo Finance gives the stock a one-year price target of $42.60. For anyone looking to invest in Bitcoin in an indirect manner, here’s a pretty good option.
Riot Blockchain is based in Castle Rock, Colorado. It’s largest institutional shareholders are Vanguard and Blackrock. That’s good company.
Biden Issues Executive Order on Cryptocurrencies, Sort of
Last week, President Joe Biden issued an Executive Order on crypto oversight, urging the Federal Reserve Bank to explore whether the central bank should create its own digital currency. Biden also “directed the Treasury Department and other federal agencies to examine the impact of crypto on financial stability and national security,” according to Talia Kaplan of Fox Business.
Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen was on board with the order, saying it would "promote a fairer, more inclusive, and more efficient financial system" while offsetting so-called unlawful finance. In reality, Biden’s order implores a wide variety of federal agencies to regulate crypto, agencies like the Environmental Protection Agency, the Department of Justice, Homeland Security and Treasury.
It’s a top-down, heavy-handed approach that will most certainly stifle innovation and leave the US far behind other countries in regards to this emerging technology.
Former Acting Assistant Treasury Secretary Gregory Zerzan said the unfortunate thing about the order is that “instead of saying, ‘Look, crypto should be allowed to flourish here in the United States,’ it takes a top-down government run approach that asks every federal department from the EPA to the Department of Justice to Homeland Security to figure out how they can regulate crypto.” Zerzan added, it is "not a pathway to innovation." Stay tuned.
Bitcoin Miami 2022 Announces Agenda - Only 3 Weeks Away!
The Bitcoin 2022 Conference, sponsored by Bitcoin Magazine, starts April 6th and will once again be held in Miami Beach. BM has lined up an amazing list of speakers for the event, which will also feature a Shark Tank-style pitch day, a huge trade show, an art gallery, concerts, and more. Over 35,000 are expected to attend, with over 100 speakers scheduled to appear.
Speakers slated to appear include:
Michael Saylor, MicroStrategy CEO
Cathie Wood, of Ark Investments
Andrew Yang, former presidential candidate
Kevin O’Leary, investor, of Shark Tank fame
Nayib Bukele, president of El Salvador
Jon and Pete Najarian, of CNBC Options Action
Issue No. 48, March 18, 2022
Rick Mulvey is a CPA, forensic accountant and crypto consultant. He writes about all things Bitcoin, and yells at the Yankees and Giants. He also runs marathons and makes wine, neither professionally.
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