Bitcoin miner Marathon Digital Holdings, commonly known as MARA, reported a sharp swing from profit to a large net loss in the second quarter of 2026, even as it achieved its highest quarterly Bitcoin production in more than a year. The company’s results underscore how tightly miners remain tied to Bitcoin’s market price—especially when the accounting reflects changes in the fair value of Bitcoin held on balance sheets.

In its Q2 2026 SEC Form 10-Q, MARA said it recorded a net loss of $611.3 million, or $1.60 per diluted share, compared with net income of $808.2 million, or $1.84 per diluted share, in the second quarter of 2025. According to the filing, MARA mined 2,422 Bitcoin in the quarter, up 3% year over year, but that increase was more than offset by a 28% decline in the average Bitcoin price.

Key takeaways

• MARA posted a $611.3 million Q2 net loss, with the decline largely attributed to changes in the value of its Bitcoin holdings.
• Bitcoin production rose to 2,422 BTC in Q2 2026, but the revenue impact was overwhelmed by a 28% drop in the average Bitcoin price.
• As of June 30, MARA held 35,577 Bitcoin valued at $2.1 billion, placing it fourth among public Bitcoin holders cited in the company’s reporting context.
• The company used the quarter to restructure its power portfolio and capital position, while pushing further into AI and high-performance computing (HPC) infrastructure.
• MARA is targeting at least two AI/HPC data center lease signings by year-end, alongside additional Texas and Ohio expansion plans.

Profit-to-loss driven by Bitcoin’s price and holding valuation

The headline shift in MARA’s second-quarter performance is stark: profit in Q2 2025 gave way to a net loss in Q2 2026. In its 10-Q, MARA attributes the swing primarily to the impact of Bitcoin price movement on the accounting value of Bitcoin it holds, rather than to a deterioration in mining output.

That distinction matters for how investors interpret miner fundamentals. Production volumes increased, but the company’s overall earnings were pressured by weaker realized economics tied to Bitcoin’s price environment. Put simply, even better operational throughput did not translate into higher net earnings when the fair-value effects and average pricing moved against the company.

During an earnings call on Thursday, MARA CFO Salman Khan said, according to the company’s remarks, that “Two things defined Q2 for MARA. Bitcoin prices created a challenging revenue environment [and] we used the quarter to fundamentally transform our power portfolio and capital structure.”

Higher output, weaker average price

MARA’s mining performance in Q2 2026 was comparatively strong on the operational side. The company mined 2,422 Bitcoin, about 3% more than the year-ago quarter. However, the average Bitcoin price fell 28% over the same comparison period, which directly undermined revenue tied to the mined BTC and other Bitcoin-linked line items.

This is a recurring tension in the miner model: when BTC prices move lower, output growth can be muted by pricing and valuation effects. MARA’s quarter illustrates that point—production strength alone was not enough to counteract the market-driven decline in average pricing.

Beyond the mining figures, the company’s Bitcoin balance sheet also remained significant. As of June 30, MARA reported total holdings of 35,577 Bitcoin with a total fair value of $2.1 billion, reflecting both continued treasury accumulation and the sensitivity of the financial statements to BTC valuation changes. In that snapshot, the company was described as the fourth-largest public Bitcoin holder after Strategy, Twenty One Capital and Metaplanet.

MARA presses ahead with AI and HPC infrastructure deals

While mining remains central to MARA’s business, the company continues to frame its longer-term growth around expanding computational infrastructure for AI and high-performance workloads. Earlier in 2026, it acquired a majority stake in Exaion SaS, which operates high-performance computing data centers and secure cloud and AI infrastructure.

MARA also moved to accelerate data center development through partnerships. In February, it announced a strategic partnership with Starwood Capital Group and Starwood Digital Ventures aimed at enabling conversion of select MARA sites to meet demand from “enterprise, hyperscale and AI customers.”

On Thursday, MARA reiterated that it is pursuing near-term commercial milestones tied to those plans. The company said it is targeting at least two AI/HPC lease signings by year-end. CEO Fred Thiel said, according to the earnings call, that lease discussions are progressing across multiple sites and that MARA remains confident it can sign at least two leases before year-end.

Texas land plans and Ohio energy acquisition expand the runway

MARA’s infrastructure buildout includes both new land and additional power resources. In July, the company agreed to acquire a 1,200-acre powered site in Matagorda County, Texas, with expected access to up to 2 gigawatts of grid capacity by April 2028. MARA said the site is intended for AI and HPC workloads as well as Bitcoin mining.

The company also continues to pursue power capacity through a pending acquisition of Long Ridge Energy & Power in Ohio. MARA described the $1.5 billion deal as a potential source of up to 600 megawatts of AI and critical-IT load over time, indicating that it views energy access as a key enabler for both traditional mining operations and new revenue streams linked to enterprise computing.

Mining still the core—AI described as a complement, not a replacement

In a shareholder letter released alongside its quarterly results, Thiel said that Bitcoin mining remains the foundation of MARA’s business and that the cash flow generated by mining will continue to support other investments.

He also pushed back on the notion that MARA is shifting away from mining. “Ultimately, we do not view Bitcoin mining and AI infrastructure as competing businesses,” Thiel said, according to the letter. He further emphasized a capital allocation principle focused on deploying each megawatt into what he described as its highest-value application—sometimes mining in certain markets, and in others AI infrastructure, sovereign cloud, or enterprise computing.

For readers tracking MARA, the key question is how quickly these AI/HPC efforts can contribute stable cash flows that are less dependent on Bitcoin’s spot price. Near-term, the company’s targets—like at least two AI/HPC lease signings by year-end—will offer a clearer datapoint on whether the operational transformation hinted at in Q2 can translate into measurable commercial traction. Investors will also want to watch how future quarters reflect both mining output and the impact of Bitcoin price moves on the valuation of holdings, since that remains the dominant factor in the recent earnings swing.

Real-world assets are moving from the “issuance” phase into onchain utility, with activity on decentralized finance platforms increasingly tied to tokenized yield and collateral rather than general DeFi momentum. According to a joint report from CoinShares and Token Terminal released Thursday, RWA deposits across DeFi more than tripled year over year to $7.4 billion in Q2 2026, even as total DeFi deposits declined by about 15%.

CoinShares CEO Jean-Marie Mognetti said the split between rising RWA balances and weakening broader DeFi inflows points to demand rooted in functional use cases. In his view, when a category expands while its host ecosystem softens, it is typically because users want financial utility—not because market conditions are broadly improving.

Key takeaways

• RWA deposits in DeFi surged to $7.4 billion in Q2 2026, while overall DeFi deposits fell about 15% year over year.
• Yield-bearing stablecoins and tokenized Treasury products are currently the largest RWA categories used onchain, including Sky Protocol’s sUSDS and BlackRock’s BUIDL.
• RWA spot trading on decentralized exchanges rose about 220% year over year, even though overall DEX volumes dropped roughly 70%.
• Gold-backed tokens and yield-oriented dollar products are central to RWA activity, with traders responding to price moves and yield strategies.
• RWA exposure is extending into derivatives: RWA perpetual futures volumes have continued rising despite a broader slowdown, including on an RWA-focused platform built on Hyperliquid.

RWA deposits rise while DeFi liquidity contracts

The most notable signal in CoinShares and Token Terminal’s report is the divergence between RWA growth and the broader health of DeFi lending and staking liquidity. While total DeFi deposits fell by about 15% year over year, RWA deposits expanded sharply—more than tripling to $7.4 billion in Q2 2026.

This pattern matters because it suggests that RWA onboarding is not simply an extension of generalized risk appetite across crypto. If investors were responding mainly to a favorable overall market cycle, RWA and non-RWA flows would likely track each other more closely. Instead, the report frames RWA growth as being driven by “financial utility” such as collateral value, yield generation, and tradable access to real-world exposure.

CoinShares’ CEO characterized the dynamic as an asset class expanding through a downturn in its host ecosystem—an interpretation consistent with the report’s broader conclusion that RWAs are transitioning into a more durable role inside onchain markets.

Why yield-bearing tokens and Treasuries are winning

Within RWAs, the report identifies yield-bearing stablecoins and tokenized Treasury products as the dominant categories showing meaningful onchain usage. In Q2, Sky Protocol’s sUSDS led the category, giving holders exposure to a yield-generating version of its USDS stablecoin.

Tokenized Treasury funds are also highlighted as a major source of onchain collateral. The report points to BlackRock’s USD Institutional Digital Liquidity Fund (BUIDL) among the products being used in decentralized lending markets, where yield-generating assets can play a role in collateral strategies.

CoinShares and Token Terminal further suggest that the RWA landscape currently spans a broad yield spectrum. The report states that RWA products offer yields ranging from about 3.2% to 5.5%, with Treasury-oriented products toward the lower end of that range and higher-yield strategies carrying additional risks.

For investors and DeFi participants, the key takeaway is structural: tokenized Treasuries and yield-bearing stablecoins are not just “wrapped exposure,” but assets designed to plug into DeFi systems where liquidity, collateral management, and yield accounting can be operationally valuable—particularly when broader deposit trends are weakening.

Gold tokens and yield dollars power DEX activity

The report also describes where RWAs show up most clearly in day-to-day trading. On decentralized exchanges, gold-backed tokens and yield-bearing dollar products account for a large share of RWA trading activity.

CoinShares classifies gold-backed stablecoins such as Tether Gold (XAUt) and Paxos Gold (PAXG) as tokenized gold within its RWA reporting framework. The report indicates that these products generate significant trading volume as market participants trade around gold price swings, effectively turning gold exposure into an onchain, secondary-market instrument.

On the dollar side, yield-bearing products such as Ethena’s sUSDe are also described as contributing to RWA spot activity. While RWAs are often discussed in terms of long-horizon investment access, the report emphasizes how trading behavior on DEXs increasingly resembles active market participation—an important distinction from one-time minting and holding.

Supporting that view, the report notes that RWA spot trading volumes rose roughly 220% year over year. This occurred even while overall DEX volumes fell by about 70%, reinforcing the idea that RWAs are gaining traction as tradable assets with a growing secondary-market role, rather than riding broader DEX tailwinds.

RWAs are moving into leveraged derivatives

Beyond spot trading and lending collateral, the report highlights an expansion of RWA exposure into derivatives—particularly perpetual futures, where traders can take leveraged positions without owning the underlying tokenized asset.

RWA perpetual futures trading, the report says, has continued growing despite a broader slowdown in crypto-native derivatives markets. It points to an RWA-focused perpetual futures venue on tradeXYZ, built on Hyperliquid, where trading volume has increased by roughly 20 times since launch.

The report adds that activity has concentrated around commodities and equity index exposure, citing products tied to the S&P 500 and Nasdaq-100, along with technology stocks. Open interest has also been rising, suggesting that participation is not limited to brief bursts of speculation.

For traders and market makers, this matters because derivatives liquidity can change how RWAs are priced and hedged across onchain markets. As leveraged instruments become more common, RWAs may attract a wider range of participants—though it also introduces additional risks typical of leverage and derivatives exposure.

What to watch next

With RWA deposits accelerating while broader DeFi deposits contract, the next question is whether this pattern persists beyond Q2 2026 and whether growth remains concentrated in yield-bearing stablecoins and tokenized Treasuries—or broadens further into other real-world categories. Traders and DeFi users should also watch how expanding derivatives access affects liquidity, hedging behavior, and the risk profile of onchain RWA strategies.

OpenAI has acquired patent assets from AI chip startup Rain AI after earlier negotiations to buy the company ended without an agreement, according to The Information.

OpenAI buys Rain AI patents after failed takeover

OpenAI purchased some of Rain AI’s patents after the companies were unable to complete a broader acquisition, The Information reported. Neither company has publicly disclosed the price, the number of patents transferred, or the technologies covered by the transaction.

Rain AI has nearly ceased operating following the failed takeover talks, according to the report. Most of its employees have also left the startup, although it remains unclear whether any former Rain AI staff joined OpenAI as part of a separate arrangement.

The deal allows OpenAI to obtain selected intellectual property without assuming ownership of the entire company. It may also give the ChatGPT developer access to chip designs or related research that could support its work on AI computing infrastructure.

However, OpenAI has not explained how it plans to use the patents. Any connection between the acquired assets and a future OpenAI chip remains unconfirmed.

Rain AI pursued energy-efficient AI chips

Founded around eight years ago, Rain AI worked on specialized processors designed for artificial intelligence workloads. Its technology focused on lowering the energy and computing costs of training and running AI models.

Rain developed what it called neuromorphic processing units, or NPUs. The company sought to build chips that reproduced some features of the human brain while supporting both AI training and inference.

Rain’s investors included Altman, who made a personal investment in the company. The relationship later drew attention because OpenAI also explored commercial arrangements with the startup.

In 2019, OpenAI signed a nonbinding letter of intent to purchase $51 million worth of Rain AI chips once they became available, according to documents previously reviewed by Wired. The agreement did not result in a completed chip purchase.

Rain later struggled to secure sufficient funding and commercial demand. Reports in 2025 said the company began exploring a sale after a planned $150 million Series B funding round fell through.

Patent deal adds to OpenAI’s hardware push

The Rain AI transaction comes as OpenAI seeks more control over the infrastructure used to develop and operate its models. Advanced AI systems require large numbers of accelerators, considerable electricity and extensive data center capacity.

Purchasing patent assets could help OpenAI bring additional chip expertise in-house or strengthen its position when working with external semiconductor companies. It could also prevent potentially useful technology from disappearing as Rain AI winds down.

The arrangement does not establish that companies backed personally by Altman automatically receive financial support from OpenAI. Instead, the limited patent purchase suggests OpenAI selected specific technological assets after deciding against acquiring Rain AI outright.

Altman’s investment makes the transaction relevant from a governance perspective, although the available reporting does not identify any conflict or describe his involvement in approving the deal.

US oversight expands alongside AI infrastructure

OpenAI’s hardware expansion is unfolding as Washington increases its focus on advanced AI systems and the infrastructure supporting them.

Crypto.news reported in late July that OpenAI and Anthropic were working with the Trump administration on a consistent federal review process for models with advanced cybersecurity or national security capabilities. Despite competing for customers, researchers and computing resources, both companies sought standards that would apply across the industry.

Under the federal framework, developers could provide designated “covered frontier models” to the government for evaluation for up to 30 days before releasing them to other trusted partners. The White House finalized a voluntary framework in early August, though questions remain about which models will qualify.

The Rain AI patent acquisition addresses a different part of OpenAI’s strategy, but both developments reflect the growing importance of U.S.-controlled technology, computing capacity and intellectual property. OpenAI has not announced whether the Rain patents will support an internal chip project, a licensing program or future partnerships.