Bitcoin Miner Argo Blockchain's Shares Climb After Regaining Nasdaq Listing

The shares of bitcoin miner Argo Blockchain (ARBK) rose as much as 14% on Monday after the company gained listing compliance with Nasdaq, thanks to a late December deal with Galaxy Digital to avoid bankruptcy and the recent rise in the price of bitcoin.

Argo, whose shares are also listed on the London Stock Exchange, said it met the requirement to continue listing its shares on Nasdaq on Jan. 13, after bids for its shares remained above $1 for 10 consecutive days, according to a statement.

On Dec. 16, Nasdaq notified Argo that its shares didn't comply with rules to be listed in the exchange because closing bid prices for its stock were below $1 for 30 consecutive days. The miner was given until June 12 of this year to regain its listing privileges with Nasdaq before potentially being delisted from the exchange.

The shares of the miner had become a penny stock in the latter half of last year when its share price dipped as low as $0.38 on Dec. 16, after the brutal crypto winter weighed heavily on it. In particular, Argo came very close to declaring bankruptcy after being adversely affected by rising energy costs and a steep drop in bitcoin prices.

However, last month, the miner narrowly avoided bankruptcy by agreeing to sell its Helios mining facility in Texas to Michael Novogratz’s crypto-focused financial-services firm Galaxy Digital for $65 million and a $35 million loan.

The transaction helped Argo bolster its balance sheet and avoid bankruptcy after it found itself in a precarious situation when a deal for $27 million in funding fell through in October, according to a Jefferies analyst. "The lower debt load should provide some relief to ARBK after its previously announced equity raise with a strategic partner fell through," analyst Jonathan Petersen wrote in a research note dated Dec. 28.

"With less CapEx [capital expense] dedicated to mining facility development, ARBK should have cash to buy additional miners and increase hash rate more quickly," Petersen added.

The shares of the miner have risen more than 400% since its Dec. 16 low to $1.92. On Monday, mining stock peers Marathon Digital (MARA) and Hive blockchain (HIVE) both rose more than 9% while the price of bitcoin rose about 0.6%.

Read more: Argo Blockchain's Bitcoin Mining Margin Widens Most in at Least a Year