Bitcoin mining companies moving into artificial intelligence and high-performance computing are facing sharply different borrowing costs, while large lenders are applying tighter scrutiny to data center projects, according to the latest Miner Weekly brief from BlocksBridge Consulting.
The report said landing major AI customers is only part of the problem. Miners also need to raise billions of dollars to purchase compute hardware, build data centers, and secure the power infrastructure needed to fulfill contract commitments.
Lenders are getting more selective on data center loans
BlocksBridge said major lending institutions have become more selective in underwriting data center loans. Credit decisions are increasingly tied to customer quality, contract terms, and the path to project completion.
IREN financings show a wide spread in funding costs
IREN, which has been shifting from bitcoin mining to AI infrastructure, illustrates the gap in financing costs. The company obtained $3.65 billion in GPU financing in June at a blended interest rate of 6%, then completed another $2.4 billion financing in August at a fixed 9% rate.
BlocksBridge noted that the two agreements relate to different projects and are not directly comparable. Even so, they show that borrowing costs can diverge significantly even within the same company.
Financing terms can carry costs beyond interest
The brief also pointed to costs beyond headline interest rates. In another transaction involving Cipher Digital, Google guaranteed $1.4 billion in lease obligations in exchange for warrants representing 5.4% of Cipher’s equity. If exercised, those warrants could dilute existing shareholders.
Rising capital needs highlight the challenge of the AI pivot
According to the report, the growing need for financing highlights the broader challenge miners face as they enter the AI market. Data from VanEck showed that by the bitcoin bull-market peak last October, miner debt had surged about 500% from the second quarter of 2024.