Blockmetrix says Texas is in the midst of a “crypto mining gold rush”—and with fresh funding, the company looks to a future where mining bitcoin is only the beginning.

The Dallas-based bitcoin mining startup has announced landing a $43 million Series B funding round from unnamed investors, bringing its total to more than $50 million since launching only last year.

“Scaling our company as quickly as possible has been our main prerogative since day one,” said Nevin Bannister, Blockmetrix co-founder and CEO, in a statement. “We’re striving to keep up this momentum and meet industry demand as we enter our interim round and eventual third round of funding.”

Aiming to purchase 5,000 bitcoin mining rigs

As with the $7 million Series A Blockmetrix previously raised, the new funding will go towards purchase more than 5,000 digital asset mining rigs, adding to the more than 1,000 the company currently operates. Currently, a majority of those rigs are in Oklahoma, but according to the Dallas Morning News, Blockmetrix will be moving them to Texas in the near future.

With the money it makes from mining bitcoin, Blockmetrix says it plans to research and develop emerging crypto revenue sources, loan bitcoin, and pursue adjacent opportunities like setting up a cryptocurrency exchange or establishing co-hosting facilities.

“We are driven to bring the highest degree of professionalism to the crypto mining industry,” Blockmetrix states on its website. “Mining bitcoin is only the beginning. We intend to use our bitcoin we mine to take advantage of adjacent opportunities.”

Crypto mining comes to Texas

Co-founder and company manager David Kiger told the DMN that Blockmetrix eventually plans to go public—and the company sees Texas as the next potential bitcoin mining capital. In addition to having relatively low energy costs, the state has taken steps like legally defining what a virtual currency is and establishing a public-private blockchain-focused work group—both initiatives that were spearheaded by the Richardson-based Texas Blockchain Council.

“Local legislation encourages continued investment in digital asset mining operations in the state with the hopes of revitalizing economic growth and bringing jobs to the area,” Blockmetrix stated.

Deep ties to the entrepreneurial world

Blockmetrix’s three co-founders—Bannister, Kiger, and Keith Spickelmier—have deep ties to the entrepreneurial world. A managing director at his family’s investment firm, Bannister, who serves as CEO, has co-founded and led multiple firms that he says have sold for a collective $800 million. Also a private investor, Kiger is the former founder and leader of Dallas global logistics provider Worldwide Express, which merged with Phoenix’s GlobalTranz last year, forming a $4 billion company. Spickelmier is a former lawyer and oil-and-gas entrepreneur.

Other team members include Southern Methodist University alums Owen McCrory and Axel Nussbaumer.

“With a seasoned leadership team maintaining strong track records in starting, managing, and scaling companies and taking them to exit, Blockmetrix is poised to be the next leader in the crypto mining industry through its experienced leadership and by developing highly coveted business relationships,” the company wrote in a statement.

North Texas is becoming crypto central

[Image: Iaremenko Sergii/Iaremenko Sergii/Shutterstock]

The North Texas region is already home to a number of blockchain- and cryptocurrency-focused startups, including Richardson decentralized public network Hedera Hashgraph—which has raised nearly $125 million from investors and initial coin offering—being one of the most notable. Others include crypto mining startup Applied Blockchain, which emerged from stealth with a $16.5 million private equity investment last April, and Core Scientific, a Washington-based infrastructure and mining firm that opened its first Texas facility in Denton last year.

Dallas is also home to blockchain-focused alternative investment firm Plutus21 Capital and serial entrepreneur Mark Cuban, who’s invested in a number of operations in the space.

According to KPMG, investment in crypto and blockchain topped $30 billion in 2021, more than the previous three years combined.

“Globally, there was an incredible increase in the level of recognition for the potential role of crypto and its underlying technologies in modern financial systems. Increasing activity in the space has also sparked further action from central banks,” KPMG’s Pulse of Fintech report states.

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