Bitcoin miner Cango Inc. (NYSE: CANG) has liquidated 4,451 BTC (approximately $305 million) in a massive weekend block sale, signaling a decisive pivot from pure-play mining to AI infrastructure. The transaction, settled entirely in USDT, was immediately deployed to pay down Bitcoin-collateralized debt, according to a corporate filing released Monday.
The sheer size of the disposal, representing a significant chunk of the miner’s treasury, weighed heavily on spot markets, with Bitcoin testing support near $60,000 as liquidity absorbed the supply. In contrast, equity markets rewarded the strategic shift, sending CANG shares up nearly 10% in pre-market trading.
The AI Capitulation Trade
Cango’s move is the latest and most aggressive instance of the "miner capitulation" trend, where firms leverage their power infrastructure to chase higher margins in High-Performance Computing (HPC). The company confirmed the proceeds would clear its bitcoin-backed loans, drastically reducing leverage to free up capital for GPU acquisition.
According to the statement, Cango will repurpose its grid-connected mining sites to host modular, containerized GPU nodes. The strategy targets the "underserved long-tail demand" from small and medium enterprises (SMEs) seeking inference capacity, rather than competing directly with hyperscalers for massive training clusters.
Institutional Context
“The divestment of a portion of the Company’s Bitcoin holdings was executed to strengthen its balance sheet… providing increased capacity to fund the Company’s strategic expansion into AI compute infrastructure.”
To spearhead this transition, Cango appointed Jack Jin as Chief Technology Officer of its new AI division. Jin, a former engineering lead at Zoom Communications, previously architected multi-node GPU clusters for Large Language Model (LLM) inference, a direct skill match for Cango’s new roadmap.
Market Impact
The sale of 4,451 BTC adds to the supply overhang challenging Bitcoin’s recovery in Q1 2026. While Cango retains approximately 3,000 BTC, the market now views the miner as a net seller rather than a hodler. The company’s pivot mirrors similar moves by competitors like Core Scientific and IREN, forcing investors to re-evaluate mining stocks based on their compute potential rather than just hashrate.
