Morgan Stanley Backs Core Scientific With $1B Data Center Loan

Core Scientific has secured a major financing facility from Morgan Stanley that could reach $1 billion as the company accelerates its shift toward artificial intelligence data center infrastructure.

Key Takeaways

• Core Scientific secured a $500 million loan facility from Morgan Stanley with the option to expand it to $1 billion.
• The financing will support AI focused data center development, equipment purchases, land acquisition, and power procurement.
• The company is shifting from Bitcoin mining toward AI and high performance computing infrastructure.
• A long term partnership with AI cloud company CoreWeave and rising AI demand are driving the transition.

What Happened?

Core Scientific announced it has secured a 364 day loan facility from Morgan Stanley worth $500 million, with an accordion option allowing the total financing to expand to $1 billion. The company said the capital will support the development and expansion of its AI-focused data center infrastructure across the United States.

The facility carries interest at SOFR plus 2.5 percent and will be used for equipment purchases, real estate acquisition, pre development work, and securing additional energy capacity for new data centers.

Morgan Stanley Financing Strengthens Expansion Plans

The financing gives Core Scientific additional flexibility as it expands beyond its traditional Bitcoin mining business into artificial intelligence and high density computing infrastructure.

In an official company announcement, CEO Adam Sullivan said:

“

This strengthens our liquidity and enhances our financial flexibility as we execute our development and go to market strategy. With this additional financing capacity, we can operate decisively by deploying capital to expedite project ready for service timelines, making us an even more compelling infrastructure provider for customers.

Adam SullivanCEO – Core Scientific

The company currently operates large scale data centers in several US states including Texas, Georgia, and North Carolina, hosting both crypto mining equipment and other computing workloads. According to its website, the company’s total facility capacity across the United States exceeds 1300 megawatts.

Recently, Core Scientific also announced the acquisition of a 265-acre site in Hunt County, Texas capable of supporting 285 megawatts of capacity, signaling further expansion of its data center footprint.

Shift From Bitcoin Mining Toward AI Infrastructure

The funding arrives as Core Scientific continues to pivot its business toward artificial intelligence infrastructure, a move that several crypto mining companies are now exploring as mining profits decline.

The company’s fourth quarter mining revenue fell to $42.2 million, nearly 50 percent lower than the same quarter a year earlier. At the same time, revenue from its computing infrastructure leasing business surged to $31.3 million, up from $8.5 million in the previous year.

To support this transition, Core Scientific has been repurposing large portions of its data center capacity for AI and high performance computing workloads.

A major step in that strategy came in June 2024, when the company signed a 12-year agreement with AI cloud provider CoreWeave to supply infrastructure for high performance computing. Under the agreement, Core Scientific committed capacity to host Nvidia GPU systems used for AI workloads.

CoreWeave has also explored deeper ties with the company. In 2025, the AI firm attempted to acquire Core Scientific in an all stock deal valued at around $9 billion, though the proposed merger ultimately failed to receive sufficient shareholder support.

Despite that, CoreWeave remains a key partner and is contracted to lease 590-megawatts of data center capacity across Core Scientific facilities.

A Long Recovery After Bankruptcy

Core Scientific’s current expansion follows a difficult period for the company. In December 2022, it filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection after falling Bitcoin prices, rising energy costs, and losses tied to crypto lender Celsius created major financial pressure.

The company completed a court approved restructuring and emerged from bankruptcy in January 2024, later relisting its shares on the Nasdaq exchange.

Since then, management has focused on rebuilding the business with a stronger emphasis on AI infrastructure and enterprise computing services.

Industry Trend: Miners Turn to AI

Core Scientific is not alone in exploring the AI infrastructure opportunity. Several Bitcoin mining firms are now repurposing their facilities for high performance computing and artificial intelligence workloads.

For example, Hive Digital Technologies has announced plans to build an AI infrastructure business that could generate $100 million in annual revenue, while TeraWulf signed long term colocation agreements with AI infrastructure firm Fluidstack valued at $3.7 billion.

The growing demand for AI computing power has made large scale energy intensive data centers increasingly valuable assets for companies that previously focused on cryptocurrency mining.

CoinLaw’s Takeaway

In my view, this financing is a strong signal that crypto mining companies are evolving into AI infrastructure providers. I have seen several miners struggle with volatile Bitcoin revenues, and shifting toward AI data centers looks like a much more stable and scalable business model.

Core Scientific’s move shows how valuable existing mining infrastructure and energy access can become in the AI era. If demand for AI computing continues to surge, companies that already operate large power heavy data centers may have a serious advantage.

From what I see, this transition could reshape the entire crypto mining industry over the next few years.

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