- Riot Platforms' Demands
- Bitfarms' Response to Riot Platforms' Strategy
- Riot Platforms' Growing Influence on Bitfarms
Bitfarms rescheduled its special shareholders' meeting to November in response to demands from Riot Platforms to change the company's board of directors.
Riot Platforms' Demands
On September 3, Riot issued an open letter to Bitfarms shareholders detailing their ongoing efforts to “address Bitfarms’ broken governance.” These measures included appointing Ben Gagnon as CEO and a member of the Bitfarms board. Gagnon joined the board following the departure of Bitfarms co-founders Emiliano Grodzki and Nicolas Bonta. Riot recommended the addition of truly independent directors with the experience and expertise to protect all shareholders' interests.
Bitfarms' Response to Riot Platforms' Strategy
In response to Riot's demands for changes in the board members, Bitfarms rescheduled the “special meeting of shareholders” from October 29 to November 6. The extension will allow Bitfarms and its shareholders to review and evaluate Riot’s demands and their long-term implications. Both Riot Platforms and Bitfarms claim to act in the shareholders' best interests, accusing each other of pursuing personal agendas. The Bitfarms special committee proposed a settlement agreement including the addition of one mutually agreed-upon board nominee.
Riot Platforms' Growing Influence on Bitfarms
In August, Riot Platforms invested an additional $2.28 million to grow its ownership in Bitfarms to 18.9%. This included acquiring 1 million Bitfarms common shares through open market purchases. As a result, Riot’s total holdings in Bitfarms grew from 84.3 million shares to 85.3 million. At that time, Riot indicated its intent to continue reviewing its investment in Bitfarms and consider further actions, including proposing additional changes to the board composition.
Bitfarms shareholders will be able to vote and express their opinions on the Riot-Bitfarms proxy contest at the November special meeting.
