Benzinga | Aug 20, 2021 11:38AM EDT

World's Biggest Asset Manager BlackRock Bought $383M Of Crypto Mining Stocks

BlackRock Inc. (NYSE: BLK), the world's top asset manager, which controls an astonishing $9 trillion, invested in two publicly traded cryptocurrency mining companies.

What Happened: BlackRock's Form 13F SEC filings reveal that it has acquired stakes in cryptocurrency mining firms Marathon Digital Holdings (NASDAQ:MARA) and Riot Blockchain Inc. (NASDAQ:RIOT).

More precisely, the asset management behemoth acquired 6.71% of Marathon Digital Holdings, equivalent to about $207 million, and 6.61% of Riot Blockchain, equivalent to about $175 million.

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According to ETF.com, BlackRock's iShares Russell 2000 ETF is the top holder of MARA, with 2.14 million shares worth over $68 million at their current price, and 1.9 million RIOT's shares, worth nearly $61 million at their current price.

The same asset manager's iShares Russell 2000 Value ETF ranks as the third top holder of the two stocks as well.

Price Action: Marathon Digital Holdings shares were up 9.68% and were trading at $34.96 at press time.

Riot Blockchain's stock was trading at $34,92, gaining 8.84% since the stock market opened.