Argo Blockchain PLC (LSE:ARB, OTCQX:ARBKF, FRA:0XP) chief executive Peter Wall says the company is being built for a cryptocurrency marathon not a sprint.
Describing the crypto-miner’s investment and growth strategy Wall, in an interview with Proactive, said that the approach to capital deployment is super important and when it comes to growing a crypto mining business scale ‘is not everything’.
“We're very selective about how we grow,” said Wall, who describes the cash and earnings margins generated by its mining portfolio as ‘best in class’.
“When I took over CEO, we brought in the Smart Growth model, and that's really been our mantra, as we've been growing forward. It's not a race, it's not a sprint to see how much capacity you can get online in the mining game from our perspective. It's a long-term marathon,” Wall highlighted.
“You want to make sure that you're built for the long run, and that's, that's what we're trying to do.”
Argo on Monday reported a surge in first-half revenue and profit, driven by crypto price movements and its mining operations.
In its results for the six months to June 30, the crypto miner reported a pre-tax profit of £10.7mln, up from £0.5mln in the prior year, while revenues surged 180% to £31.1mln, reflecting the company’s increase in production as well as the rise in Bitcoin prices over the period.
The firm also reported a mining margin of 81%, a sharp rise from 39% the year before, while the total number of Bitcoin and Bitcoin Equivalent (BTC) mined in the period fell to 883 from 1,669 last year, a change which was attributed mostly to a Bitcoin halving in May, which made the crypto more difficult to mine.
Argo’s BTC holdings also jumped to 1,268 at the end of the period from 127 BTC the year before.
Looking ahead, the company said its strategic priority for 2021 continues to be focused on “smart growth” and the expansion of its mining capacity as well as increasing returns from its installed base of hardware.