The three-way deal aims to position Exaion as a leading European player in secure cloud and HPC services.
MARA Holdings has completed its acquisition of a 64% majority stake in Exaion, a French high-performance computing firm.
EDF Pulse Ventures, the investment arm of EDF Group, partnered with MARA and NJJ Capital to support this deal.
The transaction, initially agreed upon on August 11, 2025, received all required regulatory approvals before closing. EDF Group continues as both a minority shareholder and a customer of the company.
Through this agreement, MARA France completed the acquisition after fulfilling all conditions precedent. The deal marks a notable step for MARA beyond its core Bitcoin mining operations.
Exaion develops and operates high-performance computing data centers based in France. The company also provides secure cloud services and artificial intelligence infrastructure to its clients.
Fred Thiel, Chairman and CEO of MARA, addressed the partnership’s broader purpose at the time of the initial announcement. Thiel said.
His statement laid out the strategic vision that drove the months-long approval process.
As part of the transaction, NJJ Capital acquired a 10% stake in MARA France. NJJ Capital is a holding company closely associated with French billionaire Xavier Niel.
This stake positions NJJ as a key strategic partner alongside MARA in the French market. The arrangement also brought additional regulatory confidence, as France required a local investor to participate before granting its approval.
Exaion’s Board of Directors will reflect the new ownership structure going forward. MARA Inc will appoint three representatives, EDF Pulse Ventures will appoint three, and NJJ will appoint one, with Exaion’s CEO and co-founder also holding a seat.
Xavier Niel and Fred Thiel will both serve on the board. This governance model ensures every major stakeholder has a direct voice in Exaion’s direction.
The core aim of this three-way partnership is to accelerate Exaion’s expansion across Europe. MARA, EDF, and NJJ together plan to strengthen Exaion’s capabilities in HPC and secure cloud services.
The partnership is specifically designed to position Exaion as a European leader in digital infrastructure. This goal has been central to all three partners since the deal was first structured.
Julien Villeret, Head of Innovation at EDF Group, commented on EDF’s role in enabling this transition. Villeret said.
” He further described it as a major opportunity for Exaion to accelerate its international development.
The deal also carried strong backing from the French government. France’s Finance Minister Roland Lescure described the deal as a confirmation of the country’s ability to attract international capital without relinquishing control over its strategic assets, noting that the agreement guarantees the protection of national interests and technological sovereignty.
His remarks reflected France’s careful approach to approving the foreign acquisition.
MARA’s move into AI data centers reflects a broader trend among crypto mining companies. Bitcoin miners have been redirecting computational resources toward AI and HPC workloads.
This transition allows companies to diversify revenue beyond cryptocurrency market cycles. The MARA-Exaion deal fits directly within that wider industry pattern, combining energy expertise, digital infrastructure, and computing capacity under one strategic alliance.
