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1 Jun 2026, 20:10

Bitcoin miner IREN raises $3.65B to buy NVIDIA chips for Microsoft

IREN Limited (NASDAQ: IREN) locked down $3.65 billion in investment-grade debt on Monday. The money pays for GPU hardware under a multiyear AI cloud contract with Microsoft. This is the first deal of its kind in the U.S. private placement market, according to the release. Fitch rated the facility A, while DBRS called it A(low). Rating agencies see the arrangement as a relatively high-quality debt. Goldman Sachs and J.P. Morgan arranged the deal and helped structure and sell the financing to investors. The facility is comprised of two pieces: a $2.10 billion private placement carries a fixed rate equivalent to SOFR plus 2.13%. And a $1.55 billion delayed draw term loan floats at SOFR plus 2.25%. IREN hedged the floating piece and landed a blended borrowing cost of 6.00%. The collateral is NVIDIA GPUs and the contracted cash flows from Microsoft. IREN funds ~96% of its Microsoft GPU bill IREN’s GPU bill under the Microsoft contract runs $5.81 billion. The new facility, plus prepayments from Microsoft, covers ~96% of that, or $5.59 billion. The average financing cost across all is 3.31%. IREN Limited has a $9.7 billion AI cloud contract with Microsoft, spread over five years. The company will deliver GPU capacity to Microsoft across four data centers in Childress, Texas. It operates a 200 megawatt campus there, which is part of a larger 750 megawatt site. Dell said in November it would supply racks of NVIDIA GB300 GPUs and related equipment for the buildout based on a separate purchase agreement. IREN has closed a $3.65bn investment-grade GPU financing facility to support the delivery of its AI Cloud contract with Microsoft. This represents the highest publicly rated investment‑grade GPU financing and the first in the U.S. private placement market. @danroberts0101 ,… pic.twitter.com/QFikYOH6tM — IREN (@IREN_Ltd) June 1, 2026 Why is IREN’s GPU financing structure the “first” in this space? GPU financing at investment-grade terms hasn’t existed before in the compute infrastructure sector. Companies deploying thousands of GPUs for AI training face billions in upfront hardware costs. Tapping institutional debt markets at rates below 6.5% beats equity raises or higher rate lending. “Securing investment-grade financing on these terms reflects both the quality of our customer contracts and the fact that we own the data center infrastructure these GPUs run in,” said Daniel Roberts, IREN’s co-founder and co-CEO. “That combination broadens our access to institutional capital and lowers our cost of capital as we scale.” IREN plans to have 480 megawatts of AI cloud capacity by the end of 2026. The deal comes weeks after Bernstein gave IREN an outperform rating , grouping it with Riot Platforms, CleanSpark, and Core Scientific. All four own power and land, which positions them to capture AI data center demand. Among that group, IREN and Core Scientific have moved furthest into contracted AI hosting. The others are earlier in their pivot from pure crypto mining. IREN’s market cap stood at $23.62 billion as of Monday. The stock is exchanging hands at $64.66, up by 1.75% based on Google Finance data. Its current ratio of 3.72 suggests comfortable short-term liquidity even after adding $3.65 billion in new obligations. If you're reading this, you’re already ahead. Stay there with our newsletter .

1 Jun 2026, 19:21

Swan Bitcoin Drops Federal Lawsuit Against Proton After UK Court Concession Kills Its Core Claims

A federal judge dismissed Swan Bitcoin’s entire lawsuit against Proton Management Ltd. and its employees on June 1, 2026, after Swan admitted in parallel UK proceedings that it never owned the mining assets and trade secrets at the center of its claims. Case Collapses on Its Own Premise Swan filed the original suit in California

1 Jun 2026, 14:12

Swan Bitcoin lawsuit against Proton dismissed after UK litigation concession

Proton said Swan conceded in UK proceedings that it did not own the trade secrets central to the California mining lawsuit.

1 Jun 2026, 14:03

Crypto Hacks Drop 87% in May to $81.7 Million But Cross-Chain Bridges Remain the Industry’s Most Exploited Target

After one of the most brutal months on record, the crypto security picture improves dramatically in May 2026. Total losses from hacks and exploits fall to somewhere between $68 million and $81.7 million depending on the measuring firm, either way, a decline of roughly 87 to 90 percent compared to the approximately $647 to $650 million stolen in April. The numbers offer genuine relief. But buried inside them is a pattern that refuses to go away: cross-chain bridges are still getting hit harder than anything else, and the list of protocols losing tens of millions to exploits is long enough to keep the industry honest about how much work remains. May’s Total Losses and What The Decline Actually Means #PeckShieldAlert In May 2026, the crypto space saw 40 major hacks totaling $81.7M – an 87.4% MoM decrease from April ($647M). Cross-chain protocols remained a primary target – with 8 significant #bridge & #crosschain exploits accounting for $33.28M (41%) of the month's total… pic.twitter.com/Q1vrqXZJt8 — PeckShieldAlert (@PeckShieldAlert) June 1, 2026 PeckShield counts 40 major hacks in May 2026 with total losses reaching $81.7 million, representing an 87.4% month-over-month decrease from April’s $647 million. CertiK’s parallel accounting lands at $68.3 million, arriving at a similar conclusion through a slightly different methodology, either way, the directional story is the same. May is significantly safer than April was. #CertiKStatsAlert Combining all the incidents in May we’ve confirmed ~$68.3M lost to exploits with ~$2.6M of the total attributed to phishing. After a particularly bad April, May is now the third month of 2026 to record losses under 100M$. More details below pic.twitter.com/GSWTLKXWDH — CertiK Alert (@CertiKAlert) May 31, 2026 That improvement is worth acknowledging. April 2026 was by several measures the worst month for crypto security in recent memory, with near-daily exploits and losses accumulating at a pace that shocked even veteran observers of the space. Coming off that baseline, an 87 to 90 percent decline is not a rounding error, it is a material shift, and CertiK reads it as a signal of improved security practices beginning to take hold across the industry. The honest caveat is that one relatively quiet month does not constitute a trend. May’s figure still represents $68 to $81 million in stolen funds across 40 incidents. Framed against the horror of April, that looks like progress. Framed against any reasonable standard of what a maturing financial infrastructure should tolerate, it is still a significant number. Cross-Chain Bridges Take The Hardest Hits Again Eight significant bridge and cross-chain exploits account for $33.28 million of May’s total losses, 41 percent of the month’s damage concentrated in a single category of infrastructure. That figure lands not as a surprise but as a confirmation of a pattern the industry has been watching build for years. Bridges are the most reliably exploited structures in crypto, and May does nothing to disturb that reputation. #PeckShieldAlert In May 2026, the crypto space saw 40 major hacks totaling $81.7M – an 87.4% MoM decrease from April ($647M). Cross-chain protocols remained a primary target – with 8 significant #bridge & #crosschain exploits accounting for $33.28M (41%) of the month's total… pic.twitter.com/Q1vrqXZJt8 — PeckShieldAlert (@PeckShieldAlert) June 1, 2026 The structural reasons for this concentration of risk are well understood at this point. Cross-chain bridges hold large pools of collateral in custody on one chain while minting mirror assets on another. They advertise their addresses publicly, they process high-value transfers continuously, and their security model almost always depends on some combination of smart contract logic, validator sets, and cryptographic key management, any one of which, if compromised, can drain the entire pool. May’s bridge exploits run the gamut of these failure modes, from key compromises to validator coordination failures to contract vulnerabilities. The Top Ten Exploits That Defined The Month The full breakdown of May’s ten largest hacks] reveals both the scale and the diversity of the attacks. SUPERFORTUNE888 leads the list with $15.18 million in losses, taking the month’s largest single exploit. The Verus-Ethereum Bridge follows at $11.58 million, a notable entry on the list because those funds are subsequently refunded, making it one of the rare cases where an exploit results in recovery rather than permanent loss. THORChain absorbs $10 million, continuing a difficult year for a protocol that has faced repeated security challenges. DxSale loses $7.3 million, while Trusted Volumes suffers $5.9 million in losses. Gravity Bridge, which draws significant community attention after investigators flag the mechanics of its key compromise, is drained for $5.4 million, with a substantial portion of those funds remaining in the attacker’s wallet at the time of reporting. SquidRouter Module loses $3 million, StablR Euro suffers $2.8 million, TAC’s cross-chain layer on the TON side loses another $2.8 million, and RetoSwap rounds out the top ten at $2.7 million. Taken together, these ten incidents account for the overwhelming majority of May’s total losses and span multiple chains, bridge architectures, and exploit vectors. Why Bridges Keep Absorbing The Damage The persistence of bridge exploits at the top of every monthly security report is not a coincidence, and it is not bad luck. It is a structural consequence of how cross-chain infrastructure is currently built and operated. Bridges concentrate value in identifiable locations, they depend on key management practices that vary enormously in quality across projects, and they often operate with validator sets small enough that compromising a small number of signers translates directly into full control over the custody pool. The Gravity Bridge and Verus-Ethereum Bridge incidents in May both reflect versions of this problem. When three out of four guardian keys are compromised on a Wormhole fork, the quorum math delivers full bridge authority to the attacker instantly. When validator coordination fails during a key rotation, the window of vulnerability opens faster than any monitoring system can close it. These are not exotic attack scenarios requiring sophisticated zero-day exploits, they are known failure modes being exploited repeatedly because the underlying architectural decisions that create them have not been sufficiently addressed across the industry. What The April-to-May Decline Suggests About Security Progress The 87 percent drop from April to May invites a question worth sitting with: is this genuine improvement, or is it regression to the mean after an unusually catastrophic month? The honest answer is probably some of both. April’s losses were inflated by several very large individual exploits, KelpDAO’s $300 million loss and Drift’s $200 million loss contributed an enormous share of that month’s total, and months with losses at that scale are statistical outliers even in crypto’s difficult security environment. At the same time, CertiK’s assessment that the decline reflects improved security measures is not without basis. The industry has been investing more heavily in formal verification, third-party auditing, bug bounty programs, and real-time on-chain monitoring than at any previous point in its history. Those investments do not produce overnight results, but they accumulate over time, and the May figures may be beginning to reflect some of that accumulated effort. The Road Ahead For Crypto Security Forty exploits in a single month, even a relatively good month, is a number that demands continued attention. The improvement from April is real and meaningful, but the structural vulnerabilities that made April possible have not been eliminated. Bridge architecture remains dangerously concentrated. Guardian sets remain undersized on many cross-chain protocols. Key management practices remain inconsistent across the industry. And the financial incentive to attack these structures, which scales directly with the value they hold, is not diminishing. The $33.28 million lost to bridge and cross-chain exploits in May represents 41 percent of the month’s total damage from a category of infrastructure that the industry already knows is its weakest point. That knowledge has not yet translated into the architectural changes required to make bridges meaningfully harder to attack. Until it does, the monthly security reports will keep telling the same story, with the numbers moving up and down around an average that remains far too high for an industry that wants to be taken seriously as financial infrastructure. Disclosure: This is not trading or investment advice. Always do your research before buying any cryptocurrency or investing in any services. Follow us on Twitter @nulltxnews to stay updated with the latest Crypto, NFT, AI, Cybersecurity, Distributed Computing, and Metaverse news !

1 Jun 2026, 12:10

Iren closes $3.65B GPU-backed financing to fuel AI data center expansion under Microsoft deal

BitcoinWorld Iren closes $3.65B GPU-backed financing to fuel AI data center expansion under Microsoft deal Nasdaq-listed Bitcoin miner Iren Limited, formerly known as Iris Energy, has finalized a $3.65 billion financing round structured around its GPU assets, the company announced. The capital will support an AI cloud supply agreement with Microsoft and accelerate the expansion of Iren’s AI-focused data centers. How the financing is structured The deal is a securitization of Iren’s GPU hardware and the future cash flows generated by those assets. It consists of a $2.1 billion private placement in the U.S. and a $1.55 billion term loan. This approach allows Iren to raise capital against the value of its computing infrastructure rather than relying solely on corporate debt or equity dilution. Securitization of technology assets is a relatively novel strategy in the crypto mining sector. It signals growing confidence from institutional investors in the long-term revenue potential of AI cloud services, even as the broader market for digital assets remains volatile. Capacity targets and the Microsoft deal Iren plans to deploy the funds to expand its AI data center footprint, aiming to reach 480 megawatts (MW) of AI cloud capacity by the end of 2026. The expansion is directly tied to a supply agreement with Microsoft, under which Iren will provide cloud computing resources powered by its GPU clusters. This move reflects a broader trend among Bitcoin miners diversifying into high-performance computing and AI services. Miners already operate large-scale data centers with access to power infrastructure, making them natural candidates for hosting AI workloads. Why this matters for the crypto and AI sectors The deal highlights a strategic pivot for Iren and similar firms. Rather than relying exclusively on Bitcoin mining revenue, which is subject to price swings and halving events, companies are repurposing their infrastructure for AI cloud services — a market with more predictable, long-term contracts. For Microsoft, the agreement secures additional GPU capacity to meet growing demand for its Azure AI services, without requiring direct capital expenditure on hardware. This type of partnership could become more common as hyperscalers seek flexible compute resources. Conclusion Iren’s $3.65 billion GPU-backed financing represents one of the largest capital raises in the Bitcoin mining industry, underscoring the convergence of crypto infrastructure and AI cloud services. The deal provides Iren with a clear path to expand its data center capacity while offering Microsoft a scalable compute solution. The success of this model could influence how other miners approach capital markets and diversification strategies in the coming years. FAQs Q1: What is a GPU-backed securitization? A: It is a financing method where a company raises capital by selling securities backed by the value of its GPU hardware and the expected future revenue from those assets. Investors receive returns based on the cash flows generated by the GPUs. Q2: Why is Iren expanding into AI cloud services? A: Iren is diversifying its revenue streams beyond Bitcoin mining, which is subject to price volatility and periodic reward halvings. AI cloud services offer long-term, contracted revenue with major technology partners like Microsoft. Q3: How does this deal benefit Microsoft? A: Microsoft gains access to additional GPU computing capacity to support its Azure AI platform without having to invest directly in the hardware or data center infrastructure. This helps the company meet rising demand for AI cloud services more flexibly. This post Iren closes $3.65B GPU-backed financing to fuel AI data center expansion under Microsoft deal first appeared on BitcoinWorld .

1 Jun 2026, 08:20

Ontology Shifts ONTO Wallet Into AI Data Infrastructure, Users Earn Crypto for Contributions

BitcoinWorld Ontology Shifts ONTO Wallet Into AI Data Infrastructure, Users Earn Crypto for Contributions Ontology, the decentralized identity and data infrastructure network, announced on June 1 a strategic pivot for its flagship product, ONTO Wallet. The wallet, originally designed for managing digital identities and assets, is being repositioned as a foundational layer for artificial intelligence. The move leverages Ontology’s Decentralized Identity (DID) technology to supply verifiable, user-consented data to AI foundation models, agents, and applications. Users who participate will earn cryptocurrency rewards in exchange for contributing data that helps train and refine AI systems. From Wallet to Data Gateway ONTO Wallet has long served as a self-sovereign identity and data management tool within the Ontology ecosystem. The new direction transforms it into a bidirectional data bridge: users can now perform AI-related tasks directly through the wallet, and the data they generate or share will be packaged and sold to AI companies. Ontology’s DID framework ensures that data provenance and user consent are cryptographically verifiable, a feature increasingly critical as AI companies face scrutiny over data sourcing and privacy compliance. The announcement positions ONTO Wallet within a growing trend of blockchain projects seeking to monetize user data for AI training while maintaining transparency. Unlike traditional data harvesting models, Ontology’s approach requires explicit user permission for each data contribution, recorded on-chain. This model could appeal to AI developers who need high-quality, ethically sourced training data. Market and Industry Context The intersection of blockchain and AI has become a crowded space in 2025, with numerous projects offering decentralized compute, data storage, or model training. Ontology’s differentiator lies in its established DID infrastructure, which has been in development since 2017. The ONTO Wallet already has a user base familiar with managing digital identities, potentially lowering the barrier to entry for data contribution. However, the success of this pivot depends on several factors: the volume and quality of data users provide, the willingness of AI companies to purchase such data, and the overall regulatory landscape for AI training data. The European Union’s AI Act and similar regulations in other jurisdictions increasingly require transparency in data sourcing, which could work in Ontology’s favor. What This Means for Users For existing ONTO Wallet users, the transition introduces a new utility: the ability to earn cryptocurrency by completing AI-related tasks or sharing specific data types. The announcement did not specify which tasks or data types would be rewarded, nor the expected earning rates. Ontology indicated that more details on the reward mechanism and partnership agreements with AI companies would be released in the coming weeks. This model resembles the “data-to-earn” concept seen in some Web3 projects, but with a focus on verifiable data integrity. Users maintain control over what data is shared and can revoke access at any time, thanks to the underlying DID architecture. For privacy-conscious individuals, this offers a more transparent alternative to conventional data-for-service exchanges. Conclusion Ontology’s decision to evolve ONTO Wallet into an AI data infrastructure marks a significant strategic shift, leveraging years of DID development to address a pressing need in the AI industry: verifiable, ethically sourced training data. By rewarding users with cryptocurrency, the project aims to create a sustainable ecosystem where data contributors and AI developers both benefit. The coming months will reveal whether this approach gains traction among users and enterprise clients alike. FAQs Q1: What is ONTO Wallet’s new role in AI? ONTO Wallet will function as an infrastructure layer that supplies verifiable, user-consented data to AI foundation models, agents, and applications. Users can perform AI-related tasks through the wallet and earn cryptocurrency rewards. Q2: How does Ontology ensure data privacy and consent? Ontology uses its Decentralized Identity (DID) technology to record user consent on-chain. Each data contribution is cryptographically verified, and users retain control over what data is shared and can revoke access at any time. Q3: When will the new features be available? Ontology announced the strategic shift on June 1, 2025, but has not yet provided a specific launch date for the new AI-related features. The company stated that more details on reward mechanisms and AI partnerships will be released in the coming weeks. This post Ontology Shifts ONTO Wallet Into AI Data Infrastructure, Users Earn Crypto for Contributions first appeared on BitcoinWorld .