Bitfarms jumps after rejecting $2.30 a sharer offer from rival Riot Platforms (update)

Update 9am: Adds company confirmation. Riot Platforms ( NASDAQ: RIOT ) accumulated a 9.25% stake in Bitfarms Ltd. ( NASDAQ: BITF ) and announced it made a bid for the smaller Bitcoin miner, which was rejected last month. Bitfarms rose 12% in premarket trading. Riot ( RIOT ) offered $2.30 a share in cash and stock for Bitfarms ( BITF ) last month, which was rejected. The proposal represents about $950 million in total equity value, Riot said in a statement on Tuesday. The offer represented a 20% premium to Bitfarms price on April 19, before the original bid was made on April 22. Bitfarms ( BITF ) holders would own 17% of the combined company under the proposal. Following Bitfarms' annual meeting on Friday, Riot intends to make a request for a special meeting to add independent directors to the board. “A combination of Bitfarms and Riot would create the premier and largest publicly listed Bitcoin miner globally, with geographically diversified operations well-positioned for long-term growth," Riot Executive Chairman Benjamin Yi said in the statement. "We were disappointed to learn that the Bitfarms Board rejected our compelling proposal without engaging in substantive dialogue with us." News of the Bitfarms ( BITF ) offer was earlier reported by Bloomberg. Bitfarms Ltd. (BITF) Q1 2024 Earnings Call Transcript Bitfarms Ltd. 2024 Q1 - Results - Earnings Call Presentation Bitfarms Q1 2024 Earnings: Is The Worst Over? (Rating Downgrade) Robinhood posts biggest weekly gain among financial stocks; Burford retreats Bitfarms boots CEO, effective immediately, reschedules earnings