Northern Data Sale Ties to Tether Leaders Under Scrutiny

Corporate maneuvering around the northern data sale of its Peak Mining unit is drawing renewed scrutiny as complex ties to Tether’s leadership emerge.

Peak Mining sold to companies tied to Tether leaders

Northern Data, the German AI and data center operator majority-owned by Tether, sold its bitcoin mining subsidiary Peak Mining for up to $200 million, according to a Financial Times report. However, corporate filings show the buyers are directly connected to Tether’s top executives, raising governance and transparency questions.

Filings reviewed by the FT identify the buyers as Highland Group Mining Inc., Appalachian Energy LLC, and 2750418 Alberta ULC. British Virgin Islands records indicate that Highland Group Mining is controlled by Tether co-founder and chairman Giancarlo Devasini and CEO Paolo Ardoino. Moreover, Canadian corporate documents list Devasini as the sole director of Alberta ULC.

The ownership structure of Delaware-registered Appalachian Energy LLC remains opaque, as no directors are publicly listed. That said, the overall pattern links the Peak Mining buyers back to Tether’s leadership, effectively placing executives on both sides of a substantial mining asset transaction.

Disclosure gaps and German market listing

Northern Data announced the Peak Mining divestment in November but did not identify the buyers at the time. The company trades on a regulated yet unofficial German market segment that requires some corporate disclosures. However, that segment does not mandate the reporting of related-party transactions, meaning there was no formal obligation to reveal that Tether figures were behind the acquisition.

This regulatory nuance helps explain why the deal proceeded without an explicit related-party label, even though Tether is Northern Data’s majority shareholder. Moreover, the transaction structure underscores how looser disclosure rules on secondary markets can obscure governance risks in fast-growing crypto infrastructure firms.

Earlier attempt to sell Peak Mining at higher price

The recent disposal was not Northern Data’s first attempt to offload Peak Mining to entities linked to Devasini. In August, the company announced a nonbinding agreement to sell the mining business to Elektron Energy for $235 million. Corporate records from the British Virgin Islands show that Elektron is also controlled by Devasini, reinforcing his central role in the company’s mining perimeter.

That Elektron deal never closed. Instead, Peak Mining was ultimately sold for up to $200 million to the trio of entities now identified in filings. However, the shift from a higher preliminary valuation to a lower realized price, all within a web of overlapping ownership, may draw attention from investors and regulators focused on tether related party arrangements.

Rumble acquisition deal adds timing questions

The timing of the Peak Mining transaction adds another layer of complexity. Just days after the sale was announced, Rumble—the conservative video platform in which Tether holds a 48% stake—signed a business combination agreement to acquire Northern Data for approximately $767 million. The agreement was disclosed shortly after the mining unit changed hands.

Under the Rumble acquisition terms, Tether has committed to purchase $150 million in GPU services from Rumble and entered into a separate $100 million advertising agreement. Moreover, Northern Data noted that the Peak Mining divestment preceded a change of control in which a Tether-backed platform would become its new parent, further intertwining the corporate ecosystem.

Tether financing and loan conversion structure

Tether also extended a €610 million loan to Northern Data, adding a significant layer of financial leverage to the relationship. Per the Rumble acquisition terms, half of that loan will convert into Rumble stock once the deal closes. The remaining portion will become a new loan from Tether to Rumble, secured by Northern Data’s assets.

This structure effectively migrates part of Northern Data’s indebtedness onto Rumble’s balance sheet while keeping Tether in a senior creditor position. However, it also means Tether will hold influence as both equity stakeholder and key lender across multiple entities linked by overlapping governance and commercial agreements.

Regulatory pressure and Northern Data raids

The northern data raids investigation intensified scrutiny even before the Peak Mining sale. In September, European authorities raided the company’s offices in Germany and Sweden as part of an inquiry into alleged large-scale VAT fraud. Officials are examining claims of potential tax shortfalls that could exceed €100 million.

Northern Data has denied wrongdoing, attributing the probe to a “misunderstanding of tax treatment” related to its GPU cloud services and legacy crypto mining operations. Moreover, the company has framed the raids as the product of complex, evolving tax rules around digital infrastructure rather than deliberate evasion.

Whistleblower lawsuit and insolvency claims

The regulatory pressure was preceded by a high-profile civil lawsuit in April 2024. Former Northern Data U.S. executives Joshua Porter and Gulsen Kama sued the company, alleging it was “borderline insolvent” and “knowingly committing tax evasion to the tune of potentially tens of millions of dollars.” Their complaint echoed themes later taken up by European authorities.

Porter, previously North America CEO, claimed he discovered a $30 million German tax liability while the company had only $17 million in cash and a monthly burn rate of $3–4 million. Moreover, Kama, the former group deputy CFO, alleged that CEO Aroosh Thillainathan pressured her to find auditors who would work “with no questions asked” after KPMG raised going-concern concerns about liquidity.

Northern Data dismissed the lawsuit as “a textbook example of bad faith litigation.” In October 2024, Porter and Kama voluntarily dropped all claims. Declarations disseminated through a communications firm working with Northern Data said both had “misunderstood/misstated the facts” and were not terminated for whistleblowing. However, no details of any settlement were disclosed, and neither plaintiff has publicly explained their reversal.

Tether’s aggressive bitcoin mining expansion

Tether, which owns approximately 54% of Northern Data, has been rapidly scaling its mining footprint. By its own account, the company aims to become the world’s largest bitcoin miner by the end of 2025, arguing that stronger control over mining capacity helps secure its more than $10 billion in bitcoin holdings.

The stablecoin issuer has invested over $2 billion in mining and energy infrastructure across 15 sites in Uruguay, Paraguay, and El Salvador. Moreover, the northern data sale of Peak Mining fits into a broader pattern of Tether-linked entities consolidating control over mining operations and energy assets through complex cross-holdings.

Market risk and S&P Global downgrade

Credit analysts have started flagging the growing interplay between Tether’s reserves and its bitcoin exposure. S&P Global Ratings recently cut its stability assessment of USDT to 5, the weakest point on its internal scale. The s p global downgrade reflects concerns that the stablecoin’s bitcoin exposure now exceeds its reserve buffer.

According to S&P, this imbalance could leave USDT undercollateralized in the event of a sharp market downturn. Moreover, the combination of expanding mining bets, related-party transactions, and regulatory probes at a key infrastructure partner like Northern Data is likely to remain a focal point for investors and watchdogs assessing systemic risks in the stablecoin ecosystem.

Overall, the Peak Mining divestment, the Rumble acquisition structure, and ongoing tax and regulatory questions highlight how tightly intertwined Tether, Northern Data, and their counterparties have become, amplifying both strategic opportunities and governance risks.