Northern Data, the German data centre operator majority-owned by stablecoin issuer Tether, sold its bitcoin mining subsidiary to companies controlled by senior Tether executives, according to the Financial Times.
The transaction adds another layer to the already complex financial ties surrounding one of crypto’s most influential firms.
Sale details and buyers
Northern Data sold its mining arm, Peak Mining, for up to $200 million to three entities: Highland Group Mining, Appalachian Energy, and 2750418 Alberta ULC. Regulatory filings cited by the FT show that Highland Group’s directors include Giancarlo Devasini, Tether’s co-founder and chair, and chief executive Paolo Ardoino. Devasini is also listed as the sole director of the Alberta-based company. The ownership of Delaware-based Appalachian Energy has not been publicly clarified.
Although Northern Data announced the sale in November, it did not name the buyers at the time.
The company is listed on a German market that requires limited disclosures and does not mandate reporting related-party transactions, allowing the deal to proceed without detailed public explanation.
Timing and prior failed deal
The sale was completed just days before U.S. video platform Rumble, in which Tether holds close to a 50 percent stake, agreed to acquire Northern Data in a transaction valued at roughly $767 million. That sequence effectively places Peak Mining in the hands of Tether executives shortly before Northern Data itself moves further under Tether’s influence.
It was also the second attempt to sell the asset to a Devasini-linked company. In August, Northern Data said it had reached a nonbinding agreement to sell Peak Mining for $235 million to Elektron Energy. That deal later collapsed following whistleblower allegations. Corporate records show Elektron Energy’s director is also Devasini.
Investigations and financial ties
Northern Data has been under investigation by European prosecutors since September, when authorities raided its offices in Germany and Sweden as part of a probe into suspected large-scale VAT fraud. Prosecutors have estimated potential unpaid taxes at more than €100 million. The company has said investigators may have misunderstood the tax treatment of its GPU cloud computing business and its legacy mining operations, and that it is cooperating with authorities.
Financial links between Northern Data and Tether are extensive. The company carries a €610 million loan from Tether.
Under the Rumble acquisition structure reported by the FT, half of that loan will be settled in Rumble shares, with the remainder replaced by a new Tether loan to Rumble secured against Northern Data assets.
Tether’s expanding footprint
Tether remains the world’s largest stablecoin issuer, with roughly $186–187 billion of USDT in circulation, representing about 60 percent of the stablecoin market. Beyond stablecoins, the company has expanded into bitcoin mining, AI infrastructure, media, and sports. Earlier this month, it made a $1.1 billion bid for Italian football club Juventus, which was rejected.
Gunel Ismayilova
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