From theblock by Jason Shubnell

A milestone year for the cryptocurrency market set the stage for a rollercoaster year for crypto-related stocks traded in the U.S. Among the standout developments were the debut of spot Bitcoin ETFs, the latest Bitcoin halving in April, and an embrace from President-elect Donald Trump. 

These events brought renewed focus to the sector. Trump’s endorsement added a political dimension to the Bitcoin narrative, bolstering its mainstream appeal and injecting fresh optimism into the market.

The introduction of spot Bitcoin ETFs marked a significant milestone, providing retail and institutional investors with a streamlined way to gain direct exposure to the cryptocurrency. The Bitcoin halving, meanwhile, added a layer of complexity for miners. While some companies capitalized on the year's opportunities, others grappled with operational difficulties and declining stock prices.

Overall, the S&P 500 has appreciated 25% year-to-date while the price of bitcoin has risen nearly 120%. Of note, crypto-adjacent stocks such as Robinhood, up 203%, and Block (formerly known as Square), up 24%, had a strong year.

Here are the best and worst performers among U.S.-traded crypto-related stocks in 2024. The share prices are as of Dec. 23.

The best

MicroStrategy (MSTR) +402%, $83 billion market cap

Ostensibly a business intelligence firm, it is the largest corporate holder of bitcoin and has kept buying the cryptocurrency during the year. As of Dec. 23, MicroStrategy held an approximated aggregate of 440,00 bitcoin worth over $40 billion.

Core Scientific (CORZ) +307%, $3.9 billion market cap

This North American bitcoin mining and hosting services provider signed a series of 12-year contracts with AI Hyperscaler CoreWeave in July, giving it a first-mover advantage among peers following the April halving.

Terawulf (WULF) +142%, $2.15 billion market cap

The infrastructure-focused bitcoin mining company has a self-mining hashrate capacity of 10.0 EH/s as of Sept. 30, an increase of 100% year-over-year.

Hut 8 (HUT) +75%, $2.06 billion market cap

Cantor Fitzgerald recently gave the North American operator of energy infrastructure and Bitcoin miners an “overweight” rating. Despite just 5.7 EH/S of mining capacity, the analyst said Hut 8 has accumulated a “significant amount of power capacity, which gives the company optionality.”

Bitdeer Technologies (BTDR) +122%, $2.75 billion market cap

Benchmark analysts said earlier this month that Bitdeer is set to boost its bitcoin self-mining efforts by integrating a portion of the rigs it produces into its own mining fleet, "making it the most vertically integrated firm among the listed bitcoin miners."

Iris Energy (IREN) +65%, $2.4 billion market cap

According to its November production update, the company achieved a 33% increase in installed capacity, reaching 28 EH/s, and is preparing to expand AI opportunities with NVIDIA GPUs undergoing testing.

Coinbase (COIN) +69%, $66.5 billion market cap

Coinbase said on Oct. 30 that its board of directors had authorized a $1 billion share repurchase program. The crypto exchange ended the third quarter with $8.2 billion in USD resources, an increase of $417 million from the previous quarter.

"For Q4 2024, total volume is expected to reach $435 billion, with revenue at $2.1 billion and EPS at $2.37 per share," Needham analysts said on Dec. 9. "For 2025, revenue is projected at $8.9 billion with an EPS of $9.61 per share."

Cipher Mining (CIFR) +28%, $1.8 billion market cap

Macquarie analysts said in September that Cipher Mining is “hitting its stride,” with wholly-owned Odessa built out and a flurry of new site announcements to support BTC and high-performance computing.

China-based Canaan focuses on ASIC high-performance computing chip design, research and development. Its shares received a major boost last month after signing an order with HIVE Digital for 6,500 Avalon A1566 miners

CleanSpark (CLSK) -6%, $2.9 billion market cap

CleanSpark bought up several small mining sites across five states this year and set a target of 37 EH/s by the end of 2024 and 50 EH/s in 2025. In a September interview with Bernstein, CEO Zach Bradford said he expects bitcoin to reach a peak of just under $200,000 within in the next 18 months.

The worst

MARA Holdings (MARA) -16%, $6.5 billion market cap

By far the largest bitcoin miner by market capitalization, MARA (formerly Marathon Digital) has recently accelerated its bitcoin buying. MARA's total balance sheet holdings sit at 44,394 BTC, valued at $4.45 billion.

Bit Digital (BTBT) -17%, $485 million market cap

What sets this Bitcoin miner apart is that it also stakes Ethereum.

“We have pioneered a business model we call The Bit Digital Flywheel that harnesses the synergy between Bitcoin mining and Ethereum staking, allowing us to continuously earn rewards to reinvest back into our operations,” CEO Sam Tabar said in October. “Earn rewards by sustainably mining Bitcoin, exchange a portion of Bitcoin mining rewards for Ethereum, stake Ethereum to earn yield and accumulate rewards, use Ethereum yield to pour back into our operations.”

Hive Digital (HIVE) -32%, $522 million market cap

The company reported revenue of $22.6 million in its most recent quarter. Its net loss before tax was $7.3 million, an improvement over the $22.9 million loss in the same period last year. HIVE mined 340 bitcoins during the quarter and holds 2,604 bitcoin.

Riot Platforms (RIOT) - 27%, $3.7 billion market cap

Riot recently increased its holdings to 17,429 BTC, currently valued at $1.8 billion.

Bitfarms (BITF) -43%, $917 million market cap

These two miners were involved in a takeover saga that lasted much of the year and seemingly ended in September. Under the terms of their agreement, Riot is prohibited from acquiring more than 20% of Bitfarms without prior board approval.

Greenridge Generation (GREE) -74%, $25 million market cap

The miner almost had a facility shut down in New York state but eventually prevailed.

“​​The conflict began in August when Greenidge sued the DEC over the agency’s decision to deny the air permit renewal,” according to Crypto.news. “The DEC argued that the facility did not align with the state’s climate regulations, citing the CLCPA. Greenidge countered that the denial overstepped the DEC’s authority and disregarded the facility’s compliance with existing laws.”

Argo Blockchain (ARBK) -80%, $44 million market cap

London-based Argo is focused on cryptocurrency mining and has operations in the U.S and Canada. It recently raised 4.2 GBP million through a new share subscription, which will be used to support diversification into high-performance computing.

Gryphon Digital Mining (GRYP) -92%, $23 million market cap

For its most recent quarter, the company reported revenue of $3.69 million, down 33% year-over-year, with a net loss of $5.95 million.