Michael Saylor’s daring “financial engineering” initiative at Strategy (formerly known as MicroStrategy) to acquire substantial Bitcoin reserves has influenced many companies. Over 50 businesses have adopted a similar Bitcoin-centric treasury approach. However, a new group of firms is emerging, aiming not just for crypto exposure but also to integrate with Ethereum’s economic landscape.
At a glance, the volatile price movements in Ethereum treasury stocks might resemble the speculative nature of meme coins. Yet, the methods employed by this new wave of ETH treasury companies are fundamentally different.
A Look into the Initial ETH Treasury Surge
As per Galaxy Digital, these companies are progressing beyond mere hype or passive crypto exposure, actively utilizing Ethereum as a productive reserve through yield-generating staking and sophisticated DeFi tactics.
This strategy distinguishes them from Bitcoin treasury users, who typically adopted a passive “digital gold” approach financed by leverage-heavy convertible debt.
Conversely, ETH treasury firms like SharpLink, BitMine, Bit Digital, and GameSquare opt to finance their strategies through equity, thus avoiding the structural risks associated with debt and impending maturities.
Galaxy Digital also notes that the capital held by these companies is actively deployed rather than remaining dormant. By staking ETH, they enhance validator security and stabilize the protocol across the network. For example, GameSquare employs treasury funds in DeFi-native yield strategies to support liquidity pools, lending platforms, and other critical Ethereum infrastructure.
Despite ongoing risks like dilution, smart contract exposure, and price volatility, investors can evaluate both potential downsides and income-based upsides using dilution impact assessments and premium-to-book valuations. This new wave of ETH treasuries seems to represent a more engaged and capital-efficient model.
Companies Expand Ethereum Holdings
This month, Nasdaq-listed tech company SharpLink made a major Ethereum purchase, becoming the largest corporate ETH holder so far. Between July 7 and July 13, the company acquired approximately 74,656 ETH at an average price of $2,852, totaling around $213 million. This acquisition increased SharpLink’s Ethereum holdings to about 280,706 ETH.
Based in Las Vegas, BitMine Immersion Technologies secured $250 million through a private placement of 55.6 million shares at $4.50 each on June 30 to expand its Ethereum treasury. This added 81,380 ETH to its balance sheet, bringing total holdings to 163,000 ETH and increasing its share count by 13 times.
New York’s Bit Digital raised $172 million in June after liquidating 280 BTC to build its Ethereum treasury under CEO Sam Tabar. By March 31, it held 24,434 ETH, of which 21,568 ETH was staked with an average yield of 3.2% in 2024, completing its transition to an ETH staking and treasury model.
Texas-based GameSquare Holdings raised $8 million in July through a follow-on equity offering and collaborated with Dialectic to launch an Ethereum treasury program targeting yields of 8-14%. The company made its initial crypto investment by acquiring $5 million in ETH.
The original post “ETH Treasuries Ditch ‘Digital Gold’ Model for Yield-Generating Staking: Why This Shift is Significant” was first published on CryptoPotato.
