Bitmain Sells Hosted Bitcoin Hashrate to Hong Kong-Listed Firm Amid US Mining Retreat
Ruihe Data has entered the bitcoin mining sector by purchasing hosted hashrate from Bitmain, marking a shift for the Hong Kong-listed firm as institutional miners in the U.S. retreat from large-scale expansions.
In a filing to the Hong Kong Stock Exchange last week, Ruihe said it will pay service fees to Bitmain in exchange for a share of mining rewards, diversifying its revenue beyond its traditional businesses. The company described bitcoin mining as a “distinct business segment” offering both high-return potential and exposure to digital asset technologies, while also aligning with Hong Kong’s push to develop its virtual asset industry.
Ruihe Data, which has a market capitalization of about HK$1.9 billion (US$240 million), develops big data and artificial intelligence solutions for financial institutions, government agencies, and enterprises.
The two companies did not disclose the size of Ruihe’s purchase or the specific hashrate model involved. Bitmain currently markets hosted hashrate tied to its Antminer S21 Hydro and S21e Hydro rigs, priced at about $15/TH/s and $13/TH/s, respectively.
A hosted S21e Hydro unit is listed at $4,030 on Bitmain’s website, with an estimated bitcoin payout equivalent to 105% of that cost in about 230 days. To attract customers amid cooling U.S. demand for new hardware, Bitmain has rolled out flexible settlement options. Once cumulative payouts reach 105% of the investment, customers can:
- Withdraw bitcoin earnings and keep the miner by paying a hosting fee of $0.1 per kilowatt-hour (kWh) based on total power consumption;
- Withdraw earnings and transfer ownership of the miner back to Bitmain to cover operating costs; or
- Withdraw earnings and upgrade to a new hosted Antminer at a 5% discount.
Effectively, Bitmain is pitching customers a guaranteed 5% return in less than a year, with operating expenses payable only if they want to retain the physical machine. The catch, however, is that Bitmain’s estimate assumes a hashprice of $59/PH/s, based on bitcoin at $120,000 and network hashrate at 918 EH/s. The actual hashprice is about $53/PH/s — roughly 10% lower.
The move highlights a divergence in strategy. While Bitmain and Asian firms like Ruihe are leaning into hosted hashrate, U.S. mining giants have largely suspended or scaled back new deployments, despite bitcoin trading near record highs. North American firms are instead pivoting resources toward artificial intelligence and high-performance computing infrastructure as rising difficulty, energy costs and thinner margins squeeze bitcoin mining economics.
