According to reports, an Australian Bitcoin miner is raising funds in preparation for the United States’ tech-focused exchange.
It has been claimed that Iris Energy, a Sydney-based Bitcoin (BTC) mining company that invests in data centres powered by renewable energy sources, seeks to raise more money ahead of its anticipated Nasdaq IPO.
According to Bloomberg, the latest fundraising round aims to generate approximately $200 million in order to prepare for the company’s planned IPO on the New York Stock Exchange.
Iris Energy has already spoken with potential investors and intends to file for a Nasdaq listing by the end of the year, according to the company.
The storey refers to past discussions on special purpose acquisition companies (SPACs), which might pave the way for a prospective U.S. IPO for the green energy BTC miner, with a valuation of $300–500 million.
However, Iris Energy now favours a private placement or raising funds through the sale of equity shares rather than a SPAC transaction, as the latter would have eroded the interests of the existing investors in the company.
Iris Energy began its road toward an initial public offering (IPO) long before the topic of green mining in Bitcoin became a prominent topic of discussion.
During its first pre-IPO investment round, which took place in December 2020, the firm raised $19.5 million in equity funding and $3.9 million in debt financing.
Iris was able to increase its second pre-IPO target to 40 million Australian dollars ($31 million) after receiving a commitment of 13 million Australian dollars ($10 million) from equity manager outfit Platinum Asset Management.
The company had originally set a target of 20 million Australian dollars ($10 million) in mid-February.
Cointelegraph revealed at the time that Iris Energy was preparing to file an initial public offering (IPO) with the Australian Securities Exchange.
It is anticipated that the new funding will allow Iris Energy to expand its capacity by investing in 500 megawatt data centres in the United States, Canada, and a number of nations throughout the Asia-Pacific region.
