Author: Cubone Wu Talks Blockchain

The rise of crypto treasury companies

In recent years, a wave of "Digital Asset Treasury" (DAT)-type listed companies has emerged in the capital market. These companies raise funds through secondary offerings or private placements, then include cash or equivalent digital assets on their balance sheets for long-term holding. Some also incorporate staking, node management, and liquidity management. MicroStrategy, which launched Bitcoin asset allocation in 2020, pioneered this approach, providing a replicable model for "corporate-level coin holdings." Subsequently, Ethereum saw the emergence of corporate-level ETH allocations, extending the DAT narrative from BTC to ETH. This trend has since spread to BNB and SOL, gradually demonstrating regional differentiation: the former is dominated by the Binance ecosystem and Asian capital, while the latter is primarily led by US institutional investors, with Wall Street investment banks implementing structured investments through mergers and acquisitions, shell companies, PIPEs, and convertible warrants.

BNB Camp: The “Treasury Alliance” of Asian Capital

The launch and deployment of a digital asset treasury (DAT) with BNB as its core reserve is accelerating: Gelephu Mindfulness City (GMC) in Bhutan has announced the inclusion of BTC, ETH, and BNB in its strategic reserve assets, becoming one of the pioneers in incorporating digital assets into official reserves. CZ subsequently stated that this is not a single Bitcoin reserve, but a multi-currency reserve that includes ETH and BNB. This move opens the door for more jurisdictions to include digital assets like BNB in their strategic reserves.

Nano Labs disclosed that its BNB holdings have increased to 128,000 (including 8,000 recently allocated through over-the-counter trading at an average purchase price of approximately $801 per coin, for a combined average cost of approximately $713 per coin). The company also proposed a multi-pronged approach to its reserves: continued accumulation of BNB, acquisition of controlling stakes in companies focused on BNB reserves, and investment in BNB-focused businesses to strengthen its strategic position in the BNB ecosystem. Nano Labs also entered into an equity investment arrangement with CEA Industries: the company subscribed for 495,050 shares at $10.10 per share and received 495,050 warrants at $15.15 per share. This transaction is part of CEA's $500 million PIPE, with proceeds primarily used to purchase BNB.

CEA Industries (NASDAQ: VAPE) and 10X Capital, led by YZi Labs and with strategic support, announced the completion of a $500 million private placement (including $400 million in cash and $100 million in crypto assets). The company plans to create the largest publicly listed treasury company dedicated to BNB Chain. If fully exercised, the accompanying warrants can raise up to $1.25 billion. The company will be renamed BNB Network Company and its ticker symbol will change to BNC on August 6th. 10X Capital will serve as the asset manager for the treasury strategy, with participation from over 140 institutions and individuals, including the founders of Pantera, GSR, dao5, Arrington, Blockchain.com, and Bitfury. David Namdar (co-founder of Galaxy Digital and senior partner at 10X Capital) has been appointed CEO. Subsequently, BNC first disclosed that its BNB holdings were 325,000 (an increase of 125,000 from the previous 200,000), and later updated it to more than 350,000. It also stated that it will continue to expand its holdings and launch products and services for institutions.

Liminatus Pharma announced the establishment of its American BNB Strategy subsidiary, which intends to raise and invest up to US$500 million in BNB. Positioned as a long-term asset allocation rather than short-term speculation, the company plans to utilize Ceffu's institutional-grade custody infrastructure. The company is simultaneously advancing compliance reviews and related approval processes, aiming to enhance the balance sheet's risk resistance and shareholder return flexibility while supporting its core businesses, such as tumor immunotherapy.

Windtree Therapeutics signed an equity line of credit (ELOC) for up to $500 million and a separate $20 million share purchase agreement, disclosing that approximately 99% of the proceeds would be used to purchase BNB; the activation of the ELOC is subject to shareholder approval of the additional issuance, among other conditions. Windtree Therapeutics was subsequently delisted for failing to comply with Nasdaq Listing Rule 5550(a)(2) (minimum bid price requirement) and subsequently moved to over-the-counter trading. However, the company stated that this change did not affect its established business and information disclosure arrangements.

Huaxing Capital and YZi Labs signed a strategic cooperation memorandum: they plan to allocate approximately US$100 million in BNB for their own operations; while promoting the listing of BNB on a licensed and compliant virtual asset exchange in Hong Kong, they will work with ecosystem partners to plan a RWA fund worth hundreds of millions of dollars; the two parties will provide strategic and resource empowerment around project docking, brand and market support, financial product design and capital market collaboration (the memorandum is a framework, non-binding document, and the formal agreement will prevail later).

With the strategic support of YZi Labs, B Strategy is preparing to establish a US-listed treasury company for BNB, with a target size of US$1 billion. It is positioned as a dual-wheel drive of "holding + ecological investment" and has clearly put forward the capital management goal of "maximizing BNB-per-share". The company's management team comes from backgrounds in crypto and traditional investment banks/law firms. It plans to use a publicly listed vehicle to receive global funds and emphasize independent custody, verifiable holdings and transparent disclosure.

As a multi-asset sample, The Brooker Group recently disclosed that it holds 43,022.4 BNB; the company's financial report shows that the increase in digital asset inventory during the period was mainly due to "earned income" rather than new investment purchases, and it also holds BTC, ETH, SOL, etc. in its asset portfolio.

Amber International partnered with Hash Global to launch the BNB Fund, providing institutional investors with native yield products for BNB on-chain scenarios. Meanwhile, Amber International completed a $25.5 million private placement at a price of $10.45 per share, a 5% discount to the three-day average price. Its $100 million crypto ecosystem reserve was expanded from the original BTC, ETH, and SOL to include BNB, XRP, and SUI, strengthening its linkage with the BNB ecosystem and enhancing its configuration flexibility.

Changpeng Zhao (CZ) discusses crypto asset treasury strategies (DAT)

A bridge for traditional investors to enter the crypto world. Many people tend to oversimplify the concept of DAT, but in reality, this sector is diverse and subdivided. Ultimately, its core logic is to package digital currencies as stocks, allowing traditional investors to participate in investment more easily.

The DAT sector exists at various levels and in various forms, and just like traditional companies, various models can coexist. Crypto ETFs are primarily issued in the United States, but many investors lack US stock accounts or are unwilling to bear the high transaction and management costs. In contrast, publicly listed companies like Strategy, by directly holding digital currencies, often achieve lower-cost asset allocation and offer more diverse financing options, including access to markets such as the US, Hong Kong, and Japan. Differences in financing channels and investor structures among listed companies in different regions also shape their unique market landscapes.

From BTC, ETH to SOL: Wall Street's third main line

According to Strategic SOL Reserve data, the 13 institutions tracked hold a total of approximately 8.689 million SOL. Large holdings are concentrated in a few institutions: Sharps Technology (approximately 2.14 million SOL), Upexi (approximately 2 million SOL), DeFi Development Corp (approximately 1.831 million SOL), Mercurity Fintech (approximately 1.083 million SOL), and iSpecimen (approximately 1 million SOL).

Among them, DeFi Development Corp participated in staking about 158,900 SOLs; the total number of SOLs pledged by the entire sample was about 585,100, with an average annualized rate of about 6.86%.

Galaxy Digital, Jump Crypto, and Multicoin Capital are in talks with investors to raise approximately $1 billion for centralized SOL allocation and to establish a digital asset treasury for Solana through the acquisition of a publicly traded company. Cantor Fitzgerald is serving as the lead investment bank. The plan has reportedly been approved by the Solana Foundation and is expected to be completed in early September.

Meanwhile, Pantera Capital is leading an investment in a Nasdaq-listed company, aiming to raise up to $1.25 billion and transform it into an investment/treasury platform centered around Solana. Pantera will initially lead the $500 million round, with an option to raise an additional $750 million through warrants. The target company will raise cash through a secondary offering of new shares to a Pantera-led investor group, which will then use the proceeds to purchase Solana to establish a treasury. Pantera will appoint a senior executive to the company's board of directors, and the target company will be renamed "Solana Co." In addition to US institutions, some Asian investors will also participate, with Pantera investing approximately $100 million of its own capital. The name of the target company has not yet been disclosed, pending official announcements.

It's important to emphasize that DATs aren't equivalent to "buying up" at market prices in the secondary market. Treasury holdings can be increased through targeted placements by the foundation, discounted over-the-counter (OTC) trading, or through the exchange of existing locked-up shares. Provided there's sufficient proof of ownership and provenance, and custody and on-chain verification, these positions can be recorded as holdings according to disclosed/audited standards. In practice, there's often room for discretion among parties regarding standards and procedures. For ordinary investors, this means, on the one hand, facing disclosure timing mismatches (funds secured, custody addresses disclosed, and financial recordings often lag behind price reactions) and short-term momentum driven by anticipatory trading (fear of loss or loss caused by rumors, roadshows, and hype, and the "buy the anticipation, sell the reality" pattern). On the other hand, treasury-related listed companies may experience a prolonged period of stock price premiums above net asset value (NAV) per share due to premiums on themes, scarce liquidity, and refinancing structures. More attention should be paid to the risks of exit and strategy changes: such as the lifting of restrictions on additional issuance/share swaps, disclosure of share reductions or portfolio adjustments, sales of treasury assets, strategic adjustments, and even the impact of delisting/transferring to other boards on stock prices and spot prices.

Considering Solana's token holding structure and participant profile, the DAT and early, highly concentrated lockups by foundations and VCs may have a synergistic effect: some announcements of "buying for reserve" may not necessarily reflect net new buying in the secondary market, but rather share swaps or discounted over-the-counter transfers through the DAT vehicle. In the short term, these engineered capital actions could still lead to a pulsed upward price movement. However, if net demand is insufficient, the pace of unlocking and refinancing is rapid, or the market lacks trust in the verifiability of proof of holding, provenance, and lockup arrangements, a scenario of "more positive news, weaker prices" is possible. A prudent approach is to examine each item individually: whether the source and purpose of funds are clearly dedicated to the purchase of SOL; whether the custodian and on-chain address are public and verifiable; the number of SOLs per share and the discount/premium to NAV; and whether the lockup/unlocking and potential secondary financing constitute a dilution or selling pressure on existing shareholders and token holders.

Conclusion

Over the past year, DATs have expanded from BTC and ETH to BNB and SOL, demonstrating a dual trajectory: on one end, Asian funds and ecosystem partners collaborated to promote the BNB treasury through a "holding + ecosystem investment" strategy; on the other, US institutional investors, led by Wall Street investment banks, leveraged engineering tools such as mergers and acquisitions, shell companies, PIPEs, convertible securities, and warrants to facilitate the transformation of the SOL-centered treasury platform. Both approaches share a commonality in asset allocation and scaled holdings through a "listed company shell + capital market financing" model; their differences lie in funding sources, compliance pathways, and ecosystem orientations. Pricing is crucial not in the number of announcements, but in the actual flow of funds and chips and the mechanisms for their formation. If the primary source of funds comes from OTC/direct trading or lock-up conversions, their marginal demand for secondary spot trading may not necessarily equate to net open market buying. Investors should also monitor: whether holdings are accounted for and verifiable; whether custody and on-chain disclosures are adequate; the per-share holdings and NAV premium/discount of treasury shares; the refinancing cadence and staking/unlocking arrangements; and strategic continuity and governance. Only when the information disclosure and constraint mechanisms are more transparent and verifiable can DAT move from being "theme-driven" to a sustainable asset allocation tool.