Crypto Currents: Coinbase, IREN test the AI-or-trade thesis

Claim 55% Off TipRanks

Three crypto-infrastructure companies report after today’s close in what amounts to the sector’s most concentrated single-day earnings test of 2026: Coinbase on whether its services business can hold as trading volumes crater, IREN on whether its AI cloud pivot is generating real revenue, and CleanSpark on whether hyperscale colocation is becoming a material income line. Alongside the prints, MARA Holdings is racing a May 15 deadline to clear a structural hurdle on its $1.52B Long Ridge gas plant acquisition, and legislation that would formally classify bitcoin and ether as CFTC commodities is headed for a Senate markup next week. Stay up on the crypto news that matters with “Crypto Currents,” daily from The Fly. Join us at 2 PM ET for your essential briefing on the fast-moving world of cryptocurrency on FlyCast radio. 

COINBASE FACES THE VOLUME CLIFF: Coinbase IREN AND CLEANSPARK ALSO PRINT TODAY: IREN (IREN) reports Q3 results at 5:00 PM ET tonight. IREN announced the acquisition of Mirantis days before the print and expanded AI cloud capacity to 150,000 GPUs targeting $3.7B+ in AI Cloud ARR by end of 2026. The key watch is whether the AI cloud revenue run-rate is tracking toward that $3.7B ARR target and whether bitcoin mining margin compression is accelerating the pivot timeline.

CleanSpark Q1 showed $181.2M in revenue, up 11.6% quarter-over-quarter, with cash of $458.1M. Watch whether CLSK’s AI/hyperscale colocation revenue line makes a material debut in the Q2 print and how much of the 1.8 GW contracted power capacity is being monetized beyond pure-play bitcoin mining.

MARA LONG RIDGE CONSENT PUSH: MARA Holdings (MARA) launched a consent solicitation targeting holders of the 8.750% Senior Secured Notes due 2032 issued by Long Ridge Energy, seeking noteholder approval to amend the indenture so that MARA’s pending $1.52B acquisition of Long Ridge does not constitute a “Change of Control” event under the notes. MARA announced the definitive agreement to acquire Long Ridge, a 505 MW combined-cycle gas plant in Hannibal, Ohio, plus 1,600+ acres, on April 30 for roughly $1.52B in total transaction value, including at least $785M of assumed debt backstopped by a Barclays bridge loan. The solicitation expires at 5:00 PM New York time on May 15, subject to extension. Failure to obtain consent could trigger a mandatory buy-in of the 8.75% notes at par, adding material cost to the transaction.

MINERS PIVOT TO AI INFRASTRUCTURE: Core Scientific driven by colocation revenue of $77.5M vs. $8.6M in Q1 FY25, an increase of more than 800%. Self-mining revenue fell to $30.1M from $67.2M, down 55% vs. last year, as the AI/HPC pivot deliberately displaces bitcoin production. Core Scientific closed $3.3B in 7.75% Senior Secured Notes due 2031 on May 6, funding Muskogee, Oklahoma, and Pecos, Texas campus expansions, bringing total power pipeline to 4.5 GW. CORZ shares fell roughly 9% on the session following the print as no new AI/HPC colocation contracts were announced.

LEGISLATION AND THE FED: Senate Banking Committee chairman Tim Scott and Senator Cynthia Lummis have both confirmed a markup of the CLARITY Act is expected during the week of May 11, after missing an April target. The bill passed the House 294-134 in July 2025; Senators Tillis and Alsobrooks unveiled a bipartisan stablecoin yield compromise on May 2. Passage would formally designate bitcoin, ether (ETH-USD), solana (SOL-USD), XRP (XRP-USD), cardano (ADA-USD), and 13 other tokens as CFTC-regulated commodities.

STABLECOINS AND PARTNERSHIPS: Mastercard announced a strategic partnership to accelerate stablecoin-enabled payments across Eastern Europe, the Middle East, and Africa, using Mastercard’s Multi-Token Network settlement infrastructure alongside Yellow Card’s regulated stablecoin rails and local licensing. The initial focus spans the UAE, South Africa, Nigeria, Kenya, and Ghana, targeting cross-border remittances, B2B settlement, treasury management, and digital loyalty networks.

PRICE ACTION: As of time of writing, bitcoin was trading at $79,959.88, while ether was trading at $2,296.69, according to price data from TipRanks.