Riot Platforms Sells 3,778 Bitcoin in Q1 2026, Raising $289.5 Million for Data Center Expansion

Riot Platforms sold 3,778 bitcoin during the first quarter of 2026, generating $289.5 million in net proceeds at an average price of $76,626 per BTC, according to the company’s official unaudited Q1 2026 production and operations update released this week.

Riot Platforms Q1 2026 Update

The Texas-based bitcoin miner and data center developer (Nasdaq: RIOT) sold more than 2.5 times the 1,473 BTC it produced during the quarter. The company described the sales as routine treasury management to generate fiat liquidity for operational and capital expenses. Riot’s bitcoin holdings fell to 15,680 BTC by quarter’s end, down 18% from 19,223 BTC held at the close of Q1 2025. Of the current holdings, 5,802 BTC are restricted.

Riot has consistently converted portions of its mined bitcoin to fund electricity costs, hardware procurement, and infrastructure projects. The Q1 2026 sales follow roughly $200 million in bitcoin liquidations during late 2025 that helped finance the company’s Corsicana, Texas AI data center project. Analysts have characterized the Q1 activity as strategic liquidity positioning rather than distressed selling.

Operational metrics showed measurable improvement despite a 4% dip in bitcoin production year-over-year. Deployed hashrate reached 42.5 exahashes per second at quarter’s end, up 26% from 33.7 EH/s in Q1 2025. Average operating hashrate for the quarter climbed 23% to 36.4 EH/s. Fleet efficiency improved to 20.2 joules per terahash from 21.0 J/TH a year earlier.

Power economics shifted favorably. All-in power cost fell to 3.0 cents per kilowatt-hour from 3.8 cents in Q1 2025, a 21% reduction. Total power credits reached $21 million, up 171% from $7.8 million in the year-ago period, driven by expanded demand-response participation at Riot’s Texas and Kentucky facilities.

RIOT shares rose approximately 1.5% on Thursday while several mining peers declined. Analyst consensus has remained generally favorable toward Riot’s pivot to high-performance computing (HPC) and artificial intelligence (AI) data center development. Full Q1 2026 financial results, including the income statement impact of the bitcoin sales, are expected later in April.

The Q1 report positions Riot as a company using its bitcoin treasury to fund infrastructure growth across its sites rather than holding assets passively, an approach shared by several publicly traded miners managing post-halving margin pressure in early 2026.

FAQ 🔎

• Q: How much bitcoin did Riot Platforms sell in Q1 2026? Riot Platforms sold 3,778 bitcoin in Q1 2026, generating $289.5 million in net proceeds at an average price of $76,626 per BTC.
• Q: Why is Riot Platforms selling bitcoin instead of holding it? Riot sells bitcoin as part of routine treasury management to cover electricity costs, capital expenditures and data center development under its “Power First” strategy.
• Q: What is Riot Platforms’ current Bitcoin hashrate? Riot Platforms reached a deployed hashrate of 42.5 EH/s at the end of Q1 2026, a 26% increase compared to the same period in 2025.
• Q: How many bitcoin does Riot Platforms hold after Q1 2026? Riot Platforms held 15,680 bitcoin at the end of Q1 2026, including 5,802 restricted BTC, down 18% year-over-year from 19,223 BTC.