Correspondence 0001213900-23-026745 from Bit Digital, Inc (BTBT)
Bit Digital, Inc
Date: April 4, 2023 · CIK: 0001710350 · Accession: 0001213900-23-026745
AI Filing Summary & Sentiment
File numbers found in text: 001-38421
Referenced dates: February 22, 2023, November 28, 2022, September 22, 2022
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BIT DIGITAL INC.
33 Irving Place
New York, New York 10003
April 4, 2023
Division of Corporation Finance
U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission
100 F St NW
Washington, D.C. 20549
Attn: William Schroeder
Re: Bit Digital, Inc.
Form 20-F Filed April 15, 2022
Form 6-K Filed August 30, 2022 / File No. 001-38421
Ladies and Gentlemen:
Bit Digital Inc. (the “Company”)
is responding to the Staff’s Comment Letter dated February 22, 2023 regarding its Form 20-F and Form 6-K. Set forth below are the
Company’s responses, in the same order as contained in the Comment Letter, which we have repeated below for reference.
Form 6-K Filed December 7, 2022
Exhibit 99.1 Bit Digital press release
dated December 7, 2022
Consolidated Statements of Cash
Flows, page 22
1.
We note
you present the purchase of digital assets (USDC) as an investing activity. Please tell us how you considered the guidance in ASC
230 in determining to present this activity as an investing activity.
In response to the Staff’s comment,
we will revise future filings to present purchase of digital assets (USDC) as operating activities since the Company purchased and held
USDC for operational purposes.
6. Property and Equipment, Net, page 31
2.
We note
your disclosure that you can no longer use any of your ETH miners to mine ETH. Please tell how you determined the carrying amount
of your ETH miners was recoverable at September 30, 2022 and no impairment was required. Specifically tell us how you considered
the guidance in ASC 360.
As indicated in our response filed
on October 26, 2022 to comment 8 in the SEC Staff’s Comment Letter dated September 22, 2022, we are unable to provide an estimate
of revenue generation from these ETH miners. While we suspect the Merge has devalued these miners, due to the uncertainty of revenue
generation from these miners, we cannot determine whether impairment has occurred. At the time of filing our third quarter of 2022
financial results on December 7, 2022, we had not decided how to use the ETH miners in the future.
In the fourth quarter of 2022, the
Company planned to use these ETH miners to mine ETH classic when it’s economical for us to turn on these miners. Pursuant to ASC
360, there are 2 steps needed to recognize impairment loss. Under Step 1 - recoverability test, the undiscounted expected future cash
flows from an asset group are compared to the asset group’s carrying amount. If the carrying amount exceeds the undiscounted estimated
future cash flows, the entity is required to perform Step 2 - measurement of an impairment loss, fair Value of the asset group is compared
to the carrying amount of the asset group in order to derive an impairment loss. The Company performed the impairment testing in the
fourth quarter of 2022 and recognized an impairment loss of $3,669,555.13 for the ETH miners in the consolidated financial statements
for the year ended December 31, 2022.
Division of Corporation Finance
U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission
April 4, 2023
Page 2
Form 20-F Filed April 15, 2022
Hosting Agreements, page 50
3.
Please refer to comments 3
and 5. To the extent that profit-sharing, variable performance fees or any other similar costs paid to hosting facilities are significant
individually or in total, please revise future filings to quantify the amounts and provide additional disclosure regarding how the
costs are determined to allow an investor to more clearly understand underlying trends and variability in your cost of revenue.
In response to the Staff’s comment, the Company will quantify the
main components of cost of revenue, including electricity costs, profit-sharing fees/variable performance fees and/or other relevant costs
paid to our hosting facilities in future filings. See our response to comment #5 below for the detailed breakdown of cost of revenue in
2020, 2021 and 2022.
4.
Please
refer to comments 4 and 6. Please revise your summary of significant accounting policies in future filings to clarify, if true, that
all costs related to hosting agreements are presented in cost of revenue.
In response to the Staff’s comment,
the Company will revise to clarify that all costs related to hosting agreements are presented as cost of revenue in Note 2 – Summary
of Significant Accounting Policies to the consolidated financial statements in future filings.
Cost of Revenue, page 74
5.
Please
refer to comment 9. We note the significant variability in cost of revenue during 2022, 2021 and 2020. In order to provide the information
that is necessary for an investor to understand your results of operations, please tell us and revise future filings to quantify
the main components of cost of revenue for each period presented and discuss the underlying drivers in the variability of the these
costs of revenue and related trends. Refer to Items 5.A and 5.D of Form 20-F.
In response to the Staff’s comment,
the Company will revise future filings to disclose a breakdown of the main components of cost of revenue, including electricity costs,
profit-sharing fees and/or other relevant costs for the applicable periods. Additionally, the Company will discuss the underlying drivers
in the variability of these cost of revenues and related trends substantially in the same form as follows:
For the Years Ended December 31,
2022
2021
2020
Electricity costs
$ 15,113,046
$ 24,790,688
$ 14,104,628
Profit-sharing fees
4,027,597
5,669,700
-
Others
1,233,990
279,388
-
Total
$ 20,374,633
$ 30,739,776
$ 14,104,628
Electricity
costs. These expenses were incurred by mining facilities for the miners in operation and were closely correlated with the number
of deployed miners.
In
2022, electricity costs decreased by $9.7 million, or 39%, compared to 2021. The decline primarily resulted from a reduced number of
deployed miners due to i) the sale or disposal of certain miners before relocating from Hong Kong to North America, and ii) partial offline
status of miners in two facilities because of previously announced power cut-off incidents.
Division of Corporation Finance
U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission
April 4, 2023
Page 3
In
2021, electricity costs increased by $10.7 million, or 76%, compared to 2020. Although the Company had launched its bitcoin mining operations
in February 2020, the number of miners deployed in the first half of that year was considerably lower than in the second half. However,
throughout 2021, the Company deployed more miners resulting in a higher hash rate, which, in turn, demanded greater electricity usage,
thereby contributing to the surge in electricity costs.
Profit-sharing
fees. In 2021, we entered into hosting agreements with certain mining facilities, which included performance fees calculated
as a fixed percentage of net profit generated by the miners. We refer to these fee as profit-sharing fees.
In 2022, profit-sharing fees decreased
by $1.6 million, or 29%, compared to 2021. This reduction was primarily due to a decrease in the number of digital assets generated and
the comparatively lower average price of bitcoin during 2022.
Item 15. Controls and Procedures, page 102
6. We
note your response to comment 12 and re-issue the comment in part. Please tell us and revise
future filings to discuss the estimated time remaining to complete each remediation action
disclosed. Please also confirm that you will include the information provided in your prior
response in future filings.
In the first quarter of 2023, our Company
has taken significant steps towards improving our internal control over financial reporting (ICFR) with the hiring of an experienced
consultant. The consultant will be working closely with our management team to address any issues with the design, implementation, and
documentation of our ICFR.
To further enhance our efforts, we
have engaged a well-established advisory firm in partnership with our ICFR consultant. Together, they will provide independent reviews
of our ICFR and offer valuable insights to assist with remediation.
Additionally, our Company has also
hired an IT consultant to assist with remediation efforts around ITGCs.
This project will begin in April and
will continue throughout the year.
Division of Corporation Finance
U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission
April 4, 2023
Page 4
Digital Assets, page F-10
7. Please
refer to comment 18. It appears that your pre January 1, 2022 policy to measure impairment
based on the prices of digital assets on the reporting date is not consistent with the guidance
in ASC 350. Please tell us how you considered if your misapplication of this accounting policy
was an error, if the error was material to your financial statements prior to January 1,
2022 considering the guidance in SAB Topic 1M, and whether financial statement restatements
and an amendment to your Form 20-F were warranted. Please ensure your provided materiality
analysis includes both quantitative and qualitative considerations.
The Company recently determined that
its method of calculating impairment using prices of digital assets on the reporting date prior to January 1, 2022 and on a daily basis
using a standard cutoff time in 2022 were not in compliance with the ASC 350-30-35-19 requirement to recognize impairment whenever carrying
value exceeds fair value, which effectively calls for the intraday low price to be utilized in calculating impairment whenever events
or changes in circumstances indicate it is more likely than not that the asset is impaired.
After conducting a preliminary analysis,
we have concluded that the Company needs to restate its impairment loss in compliance with the guidelines outlined in SAB Topic 1M. After
consultation with our auditor, we have determined that the most appropriate course of action is to disclose the restated impairment loss
in our upcoming 2022 annual financial statements on Form 20-F, accompanied by an audit report, as we anticipate their release to be imminent.
This approach will enable us to make the required disclosure without any delay. Rather than filing separate restatements for the previous
periods, we will include the restated impairment loss based on the intraday low price for 2020, 2021, and 2022 in our 20-F filing for
the year 2022, which will be submitted at a later date.
Digital asset mining, page F-12
8. Please
refer to comments 1 and 21. We note that you generated revenue from several pool operators
during 2021 and 2020, including Huobi, Poolin, and Antpool. Please quantify for us the amount
of mining pool fees charged to you during each period and tell us the nature of those fees.
Also, please tell us how you presented these fees in your income statement, detail the accounting
guidance you considered in making your determination and revise future filings to disclose
your policy.
As indicated in responses to comments
#1 and #21 in our response letter dated November 28, 2022, Foundry has not charged the Company a fee for its services due to the fact
of the Company being an early strategic customer of Foundry and in view of competition. In addition, Huobi, Poolin and Antpool did not
charge the Company a fee for its services either.
We will disclose in future filings
the fact that “Our former pool operators didn’t charge mining pool fees. Our current pool operator, Foundry, has orally advised
the Company it has no present intention to charge fees to the Pool participants, it may do so in the future.”. The Company will
remove the statement “Fees are paid to the mining pool operator to cover the costs of maintaining the pool. While we do not pay
pool fees directly, pool fees are deducted from amounts we may otherwise earn,” in our future filings.
Division of Corporation Finance
U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission
April 4, 2023
Page 5
9. We
note your disclosure that the fair value of the digital assets award received is determined
using the quoted price of the related digital assets at the time of receipt, which is not
materially different than the fair value at contract inception. Please tell us all the facts
and circumstances and the relevant accounting guidance you considered in determining each
“contract inception” including explaining when and how often the criteria in
paragraph ASC 606-10-25-1 is met to have a new contract. Also, explain the typical amount
of time between “contract inception” and the time of receipt and how you determined
that the fair value between these two times was not materially different. Lastly, please
clarify if you recognize revenue when you receive confirmation of the consideration you will
receive or when you actually receive it and explain the typical amount of time between these
two times. Please revise future filings as necessary to ensure your accounting policies are
clear related to these areas.
The Company provides its response in
three parts below:
1) Please tell us all the facts and
circumstances and the relevant accounting guidance you considered in determining each “contract inception” including explaining
when and how often the criteria in paragraph ASC 606-10-25-1 is met to have a new contract.
We entered into a mining pool contract
with Foundry, providing computing power to the mining pool. The contract is terminable at any time by either party with no termination
penalty. Our enforceable right to compensation begins when, and lasts for as long as, we provide computing power to the mining pool operator;
our performance obligation extends over the contract term given our continuous provision of computing power. This period of time corresponds
with the period of service for which the mining pool operator determines compensation due to us. Given cancellation terms of the contract,
and our customary business practice, the contract effectively provides the option to renew for successive contract terms daily. The options
to renew are not material rights because they are offered at the standalone selling price of computing power. KPMG’s Revenue Recognition
Handbook provides the following guidance on Step 1: Identify the contract(s) with a customer, Period-to-period contracts (with or
without stated terms) may be referred to as evergreen contracts. In a period-to-period contract, the contract term does not extend beyond
the period that can be cancelled without penalty. Thus, the inception of each contract is determined to be daily.
In addition, we h