Bitcoin Miners ETF Surges as Top Holders Shift Focus to AI Leasing Deals
The Valkyrie Bitcoin Miners ETF (NASDAQ:WGMI) has seen a 97% increase in value over the past year, despite a 46% drop in Bitcoin's value during the same period. This divergence is due to a significant shift in the fund's holdings, with its top miners now focused on AI leasing deals rather than traditional mining.
WGMI holds a basket of publicly traded miners, including Riot Platforms (NASDAQ:RIOT), Core Scientific (NASDAQ:CORZ), and IREN (NASDAQ:IREN). These companies have signed multi-billion-dollar AI infrastructure leases with hyperscalers like AMD, NVIDIA, and Microsoft. As a result, the fund's returns are now driven by these leasing agreements rather than Bitcoin's price fluctuations.
The shift is evident in the company's recent reports. Riot Platforms reported that its cost to mine one Bitcoin reached 70% of production value last quarter, up from 50% a year earlier. Mining alone would sink the company, but AI leasing has provided a lifeline. Core Scientific and IREN have also signed significant leases, with Core Scientific signing a 15-year AMD lease worth over $14 billion in base contracted revenue.
Investors seeking direct exposure to Bitcoin should consider using IBIT, not WGMI, as the latter now behaves more like an AI infrastructure landlord than a crypto proxy. The fund's bull case rests on 15-year AI leases rather than hash rates, making it essential for investors to track hyperscaler capex guidance and ERCOT interconnection updates.