Germany's Deutsche Telekom looking to mine Bitcoin, Chinese telecom Coolpad adds hashrate

Germanys Deutsche Telekom is expected to start mining Bitcoin, according to an executive at its subsidiary Telekom MMS.

The units head of web3 Infrastructure and solutions, Dirk Röder, teased the plans during a talk at the BTC Prague conference around June 14.

Meanwhile, another telecom company — China-based Coolpad — is looking to expand its mining operations in North America via a $13.6 million investment.

Deutsche Telekom

Röder that the firm would soon start “engaging in digital monetary photosynthesis.” When the host asked him whether the company is mining Bitcoin, Röder simply said:

“We will.”

Röder added that the company has operated a Bitcoin node and Lightning Network node since 2023.

He also shared that when Deutsche Telekom interviewed him to lead the Web3 infrastructure team in 2022, he was “not allowed to use [the] word Bitcoin” in the interview — signifying a notable shift in the firms stance toward the flagship crypto.

Deutsche Telekom has officially stated that it and its subsidiary, T-Systems MMS, operate validators for Polygon, Q, Flow, Celo, Chainlink, and Ethereum. The firms also hold tokens related to some projects and have partnered with StakeWise on liquid ETH staking.

Coolpad to increase hash power

Chinese telecom group Coolpad disclosed plans to acquire $13.6 million of Bitcoin mining equipment in a June 13 filing with the Hong Kong Stock Exchange.

The group intends to deploy equipment in deployment in North America, increasing its hash power to 1.5 million TH/S from 873,000 TH/S.

Coolpad said it is “actively pursuing opportunities” in the crypto sector, which it called an “application of Web 3.0 technology,” and said it plans to continue expanding its investments. Meanwhile, the group‘s board called crypto mining an “attractive business” that can increase Coolpad’s long-term profitability and create a more diversified balance of business segments.

Coolpad began mining in the second half of 2023.

Additionally, in May 2024, Coolpad disclosed that it had purchased shares of Cleanspark (CLSK) and BlackRocks iShares Bitcoin Trust (IBIT). Going forward, Coolpad said it may buy various other spot Bitcoin ETFs and securities in the crypto sector.