The Block: CME Group board of directors nominee says the firm should start mining bitcoin

Dante Federighi, a nominee for CME Group's upcoming board of directors election, has proposed that the company start mining bitcoin and other cryptocurrencies to create new revenue streams for shareholders.

Federighi is the co-founder of Fortezza Forza RMC Fund LLC , an investment management firm focused on short-term interest rates and energy products like crude oil. He has been named a nominee for CME Group's Class B-2 director along with three other nominees. Ultimately, two nominees from the Class B-2 group will be elected during CME's next board member election in May.

In a letter to shareholders filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission and released this week, he outlined his vision for the company. CME Group is a derivatives trading marketplace. But Federighi believes that the company should start investing in other business lines including building energy plants and using the excess energy to mine bitcoin and other cryptocurrencies.

"Some of our largest investors, i.e. BlackRock, are shifting investments to companies focused on creating value for all their stakeholders," he said in the letter. "The CME Group needs to get in front of this trend by building solar/wind/hydro energy plants to power our global operations. Then divert the excess energy to mine Bitcoin and other crypto currencies."

The company could then quickly convert the minted crypto into fiat using its expertise in matching and clearing trades, Federighi argued. This way, CME Group has created another source of revenue for investors.

"While this seems outside of our core competencies, I’d argue this is our business: we, like the miners, match and clear trades. We’d immediately converted any newly minted crypto into fiat," he said. "The net-net is another new revenue stream for shareholders; deep knowledge in new technologies changing the global exchange landscape for the CME; and increased allocation to ESG-focused businesses by investors. That’s a win-win-win."