Ionic Digital, a company formed from the remnants of Celsius Network’s mining assets, has announced a strategic pivot away from Bitcoin mining toward becoming an artificial intelligence and high-performance computing infrastructure provider. The firm has simultaneously filed for a direct listing on the Nasdaq under the proposed ticker IOND, a move that would create a public market for existing shareholders without raising new capital.
The transition is already evident in the company’s financials. In the first quarter of 2026, Ionic reported $44 million in digital infrastructure leasing revenue, while Bitcoin mining revenue plummeted 82% year-over-year to just $7.4 million. This means roughly 86% of its income now comes from leasing computing power for AI and HPC workloads. The centerpiece of this strategy is a 234-megawatt site in Ward County, Texas, which has been leased to AI infrastructure provider Nscale under a 126-month contract worth nearly $2 billion, with potential expansion to $2.6 billion.
The Nasdaq direct listing would allow registered stockholders, including former Celsius creditors who received shares through bankruptcy proceedings, to sell up to 10.8 million Class A shares. Ionic Digital originally acquired the mining equipment from Celsius after the lender’s 2022 bankruptcy and began repositioning in 2025. Industry observers note that the pivot mirrors a broader trend among crypto mining firms seeking more stable revenue streams amid increasing mining difficulty and profitability pressures. However, the shift requires significant reinvestment in networking and cooling systems suited for high-density AI workloads.
