From Bitcoin Miner to AI Data Centers: SWI’s Genesis Deal

A listed European investment group has taken control of a bitcoin miner once backed by Sam Bankman-Fried, not for its mining business but for its grid connections. It is now raising money to turn those sites into AI data centers.

On October 12 SWI Group, which controls Genesis Digital Assets, raised €800 million from institutional investors at a €6.1 billion valuation. The proceeds are intended to expand data center and AI computing projects in Europe and the United States. SWI is selling Genesis Digital’s remaining mining sites in Kazakhstan and plans to use the US and Swedish facilities for AI workloads instead. Chief executive Max-Hervé George has said he has “zero interest” in bitcoin mining.

The transaction follows the same logic seen in other recent deals: in the current AI build-out, power is the scarce asset.

SWI’s $500m Stake and Path to Control of Genesis Digital

On June 15 SWI paid $500 million for about 38.3% of Genesis Digital’s shares, including roughly 77.2% of the $1.124 billion liquidation preference on its preferred stock. The liquidation preference is the amount preferred shareholders are paid first in a sale or wind-down. SWI therefore acquired most of the senior claim on the company while taking a minority of the equity.