Video platform Rumble plans to buy up to $20 million in bitcoin in new treasury strategy

Video platform Rumble plans to buy up to  million in bitcoin in new treasury strategy


Mustafa Ciftci | Anadolu | Getty Images

Rumble, a video platform aimed at conservatives, said Monday evening that it will begin allocating a portion of its excess cash reserves to bitcoin and making purchases of up to $20 million in the cryptocurrency.

Shares rose more than 2% in extended trading.

“We believe that the world is still in the early stages of the adoption of bitcoin,” Rumble chairman and CEO Chris Pavlovski said in a statement Monday. “Unlike any government-issued currency, bitcoin is not subject to dilution through endless money-printing, enabling it to be a valuable inflation hedge and an excellent addition to our treasury.”

“We are also excited to strengthen our ties with crypto and to bolster our efforts to become the leading video and cloud services platform for the crypto community,” he added.

The move puts Rumble in the same company as MicroStrategy, which began employing an aggressive bitcoin-buying strategy in 2020. MicroStrategy’s shares, up more than 500% in 2024, trade as a proxy for bitcoin. Tesla and Block have also previously purchased bitcoin. Two smaller companies made the same move this year: Semler Scientific in May and Acurx Pharmaceuticals last week.

Rumble is viewed as a play linked to Donald Trump’s reelection given its popularity among conservatives. The alternative to YouTube went public in 2022 through a special purpose acquisition company led by Cantor Fitzgerald CEO Howard Lutnick. Last week, President-elect Trump chose Lutnick as U.S. Commerce Secretary.

Rumble is up nearly 63% this year, and the stock has gained 42% in the past year.

Bitcoin itself, which came within shouting distance of the $100,000 milestone last week, retreated on Monday. It was last lower by more than 3% at around $93,000, but the flagship crypto is expected to hit the $100,000 mark before the year is over. It has more than doubled in 2024.

With Trump’s incoming administration expected to take a pro-crypto stance, investors are keeping an eye out for the next big company that will begin buying bitcoin. MicroStrategy chairman and bitcoin evangelist Michael Saylor said last week on an X Spaces event that he plans to pitch the board of Microsoft in December on his bitcoin treasury strategy.

The theme has broadened to the government level this year, with Sen. Cynthia Lummis (R-Wyoming) proposing a national strategic bitcoin reserve. This summer, Trump also mentioned a potential national bitcoin stockpile.

Don’t miss these cryptocurrency insights from CNBC PRO:



Source

Zoom surpasses expectations as it calls for another quarter of single-digit growth
Technology

Zoom surpasses expectations as it calls for another quarter of single-digit growth

Eric Yuan, founder and CEO of Zoom Video Communications, speaks at Concordia Annual Summit in New York on Sept. 25, 2024. Leigh Vogel | Concordia Summit | Getty Images Zoom shares were flat in extended trading on Monday after the video calling software maker announced strong fiscal third-quarter results and gave guidance in line with […]

Read More
San Francisco Mayor-elect Daniel Lurie taps OpenAI’s Sam Altman and other business leaders for help with transition
Technology

San Francisco Mayor-elect Daniel Lurie taps OpenAI’s Sam Altman and other business leaders for help with transition

Mayor- Elect Daniel Lurie speaks in St. Mary’s square a day after winning the Mayoral race in San Francisco on Friday, Nov. 8, 2024. Gabrielle Lurie | San Francisco Chronicle | Hearst Newspapers | Getty Images San Francisco’s Mayor-elect Daniel Lurie has begun tapping tech heavyweights and business leaders to help with his goal of […]

Read More
Intel and Commerce Department close to finalizing roughly  billion CHIPS Act grant, source says
Technology

Intel and Commerce Department close to finalizing roughly $8 billion CHIPS Act grant, source says

Intel CEO Patrick Gelsinger speaks prior to President Joe Biden’s remarks at Intel Ocotillo Campus on March 20, 2024 in Chandler, Arizona.  Rebecca Noble | Getty Images Chipmaker Intel and the CHIPS Act Office are close to finalizing a deal which would award the company a roughly $8 billion grant, according to a person familiar […]

Read More