Tether Executives Quietly Bought Northern Data’s Mining Arm for Up to $200M

Who Really Bought Peak Mining?

 Northern Data disclosed in November that it had sold its bitcoin mining subsidiary, Peak Mining, for up to $200 million. What it did not disclose at the time was the identity of the buyers. U.S. and Canadian filings reviewed by the Financial Times show the purchasers are companies controlled by senior executives at Tether, Northern Data’s largest shareholder. The buyers—Highland Group Mining Inc., Appalachian Energy LLC, and 2750418 Alberta ULC—are tied to Giancarlo Devasini, Tether’s co-founder and chairman, and CEO Paolo Ardoino. Corporate records in the British Virgin Islands list Devasini and Ardoino as controllers of Highland Group Mining, while Canadian filings identify Devasini as the sole director of Alberta ULC. Ownership details for Appalachian Energy, registered in Delaware, are not publicly disclosed. The transaction qualifies as a related-party deal, but Northern Data was not required to label it as such. The company trades on a secondary, lightly regulated German market segment that does not mandate disclosure of related-party transactions.

Investor Takeaway

Peak Mining was sold to entities tied to Northern Data’s controlling shareholder, without formal related-party disclosure. That structure raises governance questions rather than technical compliance issues.