Canaan Inc., the Nasdaq-listed Bitcoin mining hardware maker, closed May 2026 with 1,867 BTC in its corporate treasury. That’s up 41 BTC from the 1,826 BTC it held at the end of April, continuing a steady accumulation streak that’s become one of the quieter corporate Bitcoin plays on public markets.

The company also holds 3,952 ETH alongside its Bitcoin stash. But Bitcoin is clearly the main event here.

How Canaan keeps adding to the stack

The 41 BTC monthly increase didn’t come from a single source. Canaan self-mined 90 BTC during May 2026, a figure powered by its installed hashrate of 10.05 EH/s running at an average efficiency of 23.7 J/TH. On top of that, the company received 24 BTC from customer payments.

Quick math: that’s 114 BTC coming in during the month, but only 41 BTC net added to the treasury. The gap suggests Canaan sold or deployed roughly 73 BTC to cover operational costs, capital expenditures, or other business needs.

The company’s mining efficiency at 23.7 J/TH is competitive, though not industry-leading. For context, the most efficient next-generation machines on the market are pushing below 20 J/TH. Canaan is running its own Avalon-series hardware, which it has been designing and manufacturing since 2013.

The accumulation trajectory tells a story

Canaan adopted a formal Bitcoin holding policy on July 30, 2025, starting with 1,484 BTC as a designated reserve asset. Since then, the trajectory has been consistently upward.

By December 31, 2025, the treasury had grown to 1,750 BTC. Then came a steady climb through early 2026: 1,793 BTC in February, 1,808 BTC in March, 1,826 BTC in April, and now 1,867 BTC at the end of May. That’s a gain of 383 BTC in roughly ten months, representing approximately 26% growth from the initial reserve position.

Canaan went public on Nasdaq in 2019, and for much of its listed history, the stock has been a pure-play bet on Bitcoin mining hardware demand. The treasury strategy shifts that calculus. Now shareholders are getting exposure to both the picks-and-shovels business and a growing Bitcoin balance sheet.

What this means for investors

Canaan’s approach is notable because it’s organic. The company mines Bitcoin, receives Bitcoin as payment, and retains a portion as reserves. Companies that acquire Bitcoin through operations face different risk profiles than those that borrow to buy. Canaan’s costs are baked into its mining operations, meaning its BTC acquisition cost is essentially its marginal cost of production.

The risk is that Canaan is a Singapore-headquartered company operating in a sector with intense competition. ASIC chip design is a capital-intensive business where the next generation of hardware can render current inventory obsolete. Bitmain and MicroBT remain formidable competitors in the mining hardware space.

Investors should also note the Ethereum position. Holding 3,952 ETH alongside Bitcoin adds another variable to Canaan’s crypto exposure profile.