(Reuters) – Miner Riot Platforms (NASDAQ:) announced on Tuesday that it has increased its stake in rival Bitfarms to 18.9%.
Riot purchased 1 million common shares of Bitfarms, representing approximately 0.22% of the issued and outstanding Bitfarms common stock.
This acquisition brings Riot’s total count of Bitfarms shares to around 85.3 million.
Earlier in the day, Bitfarms stated that its co-founder and chair Nicolas Bonta, one of the three board members Riot sought to replace, would be leaving the company immediately.
The two companies have been embroiled in a dispute since April when Riot made an unsolicited $950-million offer to acquire Canada-based Bitfarms.
Bitfarms rejected the offer, stating that it significantly undervalued the company, and implemented a “poison pill” strategy to defend against any hostile takeover attempts. A poison pill is a shareholder rights plan used by corporate boards to deter hostile takeover bids.
Although Riot withdrew its offer at that time, it is now vying for three seats on the Bitfarms board and has expressed willingness to engage with the reconstituted board regarding a potential transaction.