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Last week, as stock prices rose 50% to levels never seen since the 2018 cryptocurrency rally, Riot Blockchain (NASDAQ: RIOT) named the former director of the listing committee for the Toronto Stock Exchange, Hubert Marleau, on the board of directors of Riot.
The Colorado-based company was in the market for a new director following the departure of former Canadian government member Remo Mancini. Marleau brings Riot a wide range of regulatory and governance experience, having also been governor of the Montreal and Vancouver stock exchanges. Marleau also has a strong academic background and is currently chairing a series of conferences in his name at the University of Ottawa.
Marleau’s appointment comes in the middle of an unusually strong week for RIOT’s share price. RIOT closed at $ 6 even after opening the week at $ 4.10, easily outpacing Bitcoin’s nearly 20% rise. Over the year, RIOT grew nearly 500% from $ 1.22.
The appointment of a new director is not the only move the mining giant has made in recent weeks. Riot agreed to a massive 8,000-unit, $ 17.7 million purchase of new Antminer S19 Pro Bitcoin mining facilities to expand operations in August.
The purchase could be an effort to ward off the efforts of rival mining company Marathon Patent Group to wrest the “Top Miner in North America” crown. As Cointelegraph previously reported, Marathon itself purchased 10,000 S19 Pro units in late October.
Like Riot, Marathon Patent Group’s MARA ticker is trading much higher during the week, closing at $ 3.39 after opening on a Monday of $ 2.38.
