Key Takeaways:
About 1,400 bitcoin sold for $87.1 million funded Empery Digital's $20 million investment in an AI data center developer, shifting strategy for the Nasdaq-listed treasury firm.
"This investment reflects the continued strength of our partnership with Hunt Properties and the differentiated investment opportunities this relationship is generating for Empery Digital shareholders," Ryan Lane, co-chief executive officer of Empery Digital, said.
The $20 million preferred equity investment closed July 20 as part of Cardinal Data Power's roughly $70 million Series A round, giving Empery Digital about an 8% stake. CDP, affiliated with the Hunt family offices Cavallo Holdings and Stratford Bridge Holdings, is developing a 750-megawatt Phase I data center campus in West Texas with first power targeted for 2027 and expansion potential beyond 5 gigawatts.
The move offers a potential template for bitcoin-heavy balance sheets: selling digital assets to fund infrastructure investments in the AI compute sector. Empery Digital's bitcoin holdings fell to 1,514 BTC after the two-month selling campaign, according to company disclosures.
CDP focuses on behind-the-meter data center projects, combining secured generation equipment, natural gas supply and electrical infrastructure to deliver large-scale power on accelerated timelines. The company has reserved supply of reciprocating engine generation capacity from a leading OEM through an agreement with an independent power producer, according to the announcement. The Series A was led by Hood River Capital Management and included several strategic and financial backers.
Empery Digital's two-month selling campaign, which raised $87.1 million, reduced its bitcoin reserves by nearly half. The company now holds 1,514 BTC, down from about 2,914 BTC before the sales began. The firm did not disclose the average price at which it sold the bitcoin.
The investment marks a departure from the pure bitcoin treasury model embraced by companies such as MicroStrategy Inc., which continues to accumulate bitcoin without selling. Other firms are exploring hybrid approaches: last week, analyst Lyn Alden co-founded Orange Juice HODLINGS, a permanent-capital holding company backed by Mexican billionaire Ricardo Salinas that launched with $40 million to acquire businesses while using bitcoin as its treasury reserve asset, according to BitcoinTreasuries.NET.
For Empery Digital, the CDP stake provides exposure to the surging demand for AI computing infrastructure. The West Texas campus is the first in CDP's development pipeline, with several other large-scale projects in various stages of development. The company said it plans to continue pursuing hyperscaler-anchored opportunities at the intersection of digital assets and next-generation compute.
This article is for informational purposes only and does not constitute investment advice.
