Azimut invests in Alps Blockchain

Azimuthan independent, global group in asset management, wealth management, investment banking and fintech, has promoted a club agreement to invest in Alps Blockchaina leading company in Italy that develops the infrastructure behind blockchain.

Azimut’s EUR 40 million investment in Alps Blockchain

Azimuth’s €40 million the investment came through Azimut Enterprises Srl and Azimut Direct Investment Alps Blockchain SCSp.

The latter is a dedicated Luxembourg vehicle that enabled some 600 customers served by the group’s network of financial advisors and asset managers in Italy to take exposure to the growth of sustainable blockchain sector.

The agreement includes an equity component, through the purchase of a share of approx. 45%, and a bond component with a convertible loan. Alps Blockchain, for its part, is a Trentino-based company specializing in mining research and development.

The main goal is to produce computing power for blockchain through the creation and operation of state-of-the-art data centers powered by renewable sources of energy.

Founded in 2018, the company introduced an innovative system in Italy that involves the installation of data centers inside hydroelectric plants to directly convert hydropower into computing power, complementing the traditional power generation system.

To date, Alps Blockchain has built more than 20 data centers with a total of approx 3,950 miners, which are dedicated hardware for mining. In addition to the data centers located within Italian hydropower plants and coordinated as a supplier, there are also those managed directly and located abroad, both under construction and already in operation.

In just over four years, Alps Blockchain has experienced exponential growth and now aims to consolidate and implement its business model. The new capital will allow the company to invest in expansion and internationalization projects.

The company’s goal is to increase the current group of miners to approximately 12,000 last-generation units, or 1.5 exahash capacity, by 2023. The agreement also aims to promote the development of services to spread a sustainable culture related to blockchain and mining.

Comments regarding the Azimut and Alps Blockchain collaboration

Giorgio MeddaCEO and Global Head of Asset Management & Fintech in Azimut Group, commented on the matter as follows:

“We are delighted to have carried out this operation in which Azimut invests directly and with our customers, not only in an all-Italian excellence of sustainable technological development, but also in the digital future and in our country’s young talents.”

Indeed, now that Azimut has joined Alps Blockchain, it will see a strengthening of its positioning and view of blockchain, digital assets and decentralized finance as the new frontiers of investment and operational capabilities that the digital transformation is pushing Asset Management industry.

Francesco BuffaCEO Alps Blockchain, also said on the subject:

“At Alps Blockchain, we firmly believe in the potential of this technology and in the need to develop increasingly efficient and sustainable approaches.”

For this reason, Alps Blockchain has taken the initiative to unite the world of blockchain and mining with the world of renewable energy. To this end, it has developed a solution in Italy that aims to support the hydropower sector and provide a new business opportunity for power producers that will help keep established plants profitable when government incentives end.

Indeed, Buffa concluded:

“The new synergy with Azimut represents a significant milestone that will allow us to continue along the strategic path we have taken, consolidate our presence at national level and accelerate growth in international markets, such as in South America.”

Francesca FailoniCFO Alps Blockchain, adds:

“The increase in resources will allow us to participate and contribute more significantly to the functioning of the blockchain network, favoring the development of solid and sustainable projects over time.

Thanks to this financial operation, we will not only be able to increase and make our existing data centers more efficient, but also to invest in the construction of new facilities, with the aim of quadrupling the data power generation capacity at the service of this technology. the end of the year.”

How much electricity does blockchain use?

As we know, blockchain, which will be used more and more in various sectors, from finance to logistics or from healthcare to food, is an energy-intensive technology, as it requires high computing power to validate transactions.

According to the Cambridge Bitcoin Electricity Consumption Index (Cbeci), the Bitcoin blockchain uses 14 gigawatts of electricity, which equates to a total annual electricity consumption of 122 terawatt-hours.

It follows that the energy consumption of proof-of-work blockchains is not negligible. Since all blockchains work the same, we focus on the most important one, viz Bitcoin.

The main driver of Bitcoin’s power consumption is the expected profitability of the miners (ie their expected revenue minus costs). Mining revenue is highly volatile and mainly depends on the unpredictable Bitcoin price.

Operating costs are more predictable and are mainly determined by electricity costs. Higher Bitcoin prices or lower electricity costs generally result higher power consumptiongiven higher profitability and the use of more hardware.

According to Cbeci, as of February 8, 2022, the Bitcoin blockchain used 14.27 gigawatts (GW) of electricity, which equates to a total annual electricity consumption of 125.10 terawatt hours (TWh).

The number is an annualized target that assumes continuous energy use at the rate mentioned above for a period of one year. This is 0.59% of the world’s total annual electricity consumption.