MARA Bitcoin sell-off rumor flares as exec pushes back and filing widens sales options

March 5, 2026
MARA Bitcoin sell-off rumor flares as exec pushes back and filing widens sales options

New York, March 5, 2026, 07:16 EST

  • An executive at MARA pushed back on circulating online rumors that the miner plans to dump the bulk of its bitcoin holdings.
  • The annual filing gave the company more leeway to sell any bitcoin on its balance sheet.
  • This week, shares of crypto miners have seesawed as investors zero in on liquidity and how much coin they’re selling.

MARA Holdings is countering fresh online rumors about plans to unload most of its bitcoin, a narrative that picked up after its latest annual filing. “Our 2026 10-K clearly states we expanded our strategy to allow for sales of bitcoin held on our balance sheet,” Robert Samuels, vice president of investor relations, posted on X. TradingView

This matters for MARA, since the company holds a sizable bitcoin stash—investors frequently use the stock as a stand-in for the cryptocurrency. Even a suggestion that a big holder might start offloading coins can shake sentiment quickly.

MARA disclosed in its Form 10-K that it overhauled its digital asset management strategy in 2026, opening the door to selling bitcoin from its balance sheet. The pivot came after the company allowed sales from operations in the back half of 2025. As of Dec. 31, 2025, MARA was holding 53,822 bitcoin, with 15,315 of those either loaned out or pledged. The 2025 period saw a $422.2 million drop tied to the change in fair value on those holdings. According to the filing, 5,938 bitcoin had been used as collateral against $350 million in borrowings, and MARA reported $32.1 million in interest earned from lending activities.

MARA slipped roughly 0.3% to $9.29 ahead of Thursday’s open, Investing.com data showed.

This episode unfolds at a time when investors are picking apart miners’ balance sheets and swiftly reacting to signs of a cash grab. Shares of Riot Platforms and Core Scientific dropped on March 3 after both announced plans to unload more bitcoin to shore up liquidity. MARA, too, came under scrutiny about its own coin sales and cash leeway, according to Investor’s Business Daily. Bitcoin hovered near $67,900 during all this, the report noted.

Bitcoin miners get paid in new coins for confirming network transactions, often selling a portion of their mined bitcoin to cover electricity costs or invest in growth. Each company’s “treasury” policy details whether it holds, lends, uses as collateral, or sells its bitcoin after mining.

But that flexibility isn’t always an advantage. Should bitcoin fall, or if credit gets tighter or capex suddenly jumps, investors may be looking at bigger, quicker sales than anticipated. The company’s performance would remain closely tied to crypto price swings, along with all the risks connected to lending and collateral.

Hallandale Beach, Florida-based MARA mines bitcoin and offers data-center gear like immersion-cooled systems, LSEG data show. For 2025, the company logged revenue near $907.1 million, but posted a net loss around $1.31 billion, per the same data.

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