MARA Holdings Launches Foundation Focused on Bitcoin Network Health and Quantum Threats

MARA Holdings CEO Fred Thiel announced the MARA Foundation at the Bitcoin Conference in Las Vegas on April 27, 2026, establishing a new organization focused on Bitcoin network resilience and emerging threats like quantum computing. The foundation will fund research into network security, support development of a sustainable transaction-fee market, and promote open source development across scaling, mining, and user infrastructure. Thiel emphasized that Bitcoin's decentralization means distributed responsibility rather than self-sufficiency, framing the network as a public utility requiring active stewardship. The foundation launched with a $100,000 community grant vote among three nonprofit organizations and will engage in education, policy outreach, and expanding access to self-custody globally.

Launch and Mission of the MARA Foundation

• ▪The MARA Foundation will focus on maintaining bitcoin's core properties as sound, durable money while advocating for bitcoin's open and global use
• ▪Fred Thiel described bitcoin as a public utility that nobody owns, but everybody depends on
• ▪The MARA Foundation aims to support the long-term resilience of the bitcoin network beyond MARA Holdings' bitcoin and AI mining operations
• ▪MARA Holdings CEO Fred Thiel announced the launch of the MARA Foundation at the Bitcoin Conference in Las Vegas on Monday, April 27, 2026

Bitcoin Network Sustainability and Security Challenges

• ▪Fred Thiel stated that bitcoin decentralization means responsibility is distributed, not that the network runs on itself
• ▪The MARA Foundation will prioritize supporting the bitcoin network's security budget, particularly the development of a sustainable transaction-fee market
• ▪The MARA Foundation will fund research into emerging risks to the bitcoin network, such as quantum computing
• ▪Fred Thiel stated that bitcoin's future is not guaranteed at the Bitcoin Conference in Las Vegas

Foundation Initiatives and Community Engagement

• ▪The MARA Foundation will expand access to self-custody and promote financial sovereignty worldwide
• ▪Education and policy engagement are central to the MARA Foundation initiative, including technical training, multilingual resources, and outreach to regulators
• ▪MARA Holdings plans to fund open source development across scaling, mining, and user infrastructure through the MARA Foundation
• ▪MARA Holdings will award $100,000 to one of three nonprofit organizations as part of the MARA Foundation launch, with the recipient chosen by community vote

Perspective of MARA Holdings

• ▪MARA Holdings believes the bitcoin network's long-term security depends on developing a sustainable transaction-fee market beyond block subsidies
• ▪MARA Holdings views bitcoin as requiring active stewardship rather than passive reliance on decentralization
• ▪MARA Holdings positions itself as taking responsibility for bitcoin infrastructure beyond its direct commercial mining interests
• ▪MARA Holdings identifies quantum computing as an emerging existential risk to the bitcoin network requiring proactive research funding

Perspective of Bitcoin decentralization advocates

• ▪MARA Holdings' framing that bitcoin requires active corporate stewardship may contradict principles of permissionless, leaderless network governance