Bitcoin mining firm Argo Blockchain takes $20 million loan to build out Texas facility

U.K.-based bitcoin mining firm Argo Blockchain has taken a $20 million loan to build out its facility in Texas, U.S.

The loan is from crypto financial services firm Galaxy Digital and is backed by part of Argo's bitcoin holdings, meaning the firm won't have to sell its bitcoin for the Texas expansion. The loan period is for six months. Argo didn't disclose other terms of the financing.

Argo announced the Texas facility earlier this year, saying it will have a power capacity of 200 megawatts (MW). At the time, the firm said it would raise $17.5 million by issuing new shares and also take a $100 million "pre-negotiated" loan for the Texas facility. Argo currently has three mining facilities in Canada with a total capacity of 35 MW, where it mines bitcoin and privacy-oriented cryptocurrency Zcash, according to its website.

Argo is listed on the London Stock Exchange and currently has a market capitalization of nearly $700 million. The firm's stock, like most other crypto mining stocks, has outperformed bitcoin, according to The Block's Data Dashboard. Argo stock's price has surged nearly 925% since its listing in August 2018, while bitcoin's price has increased almost 385% during the same period.