Galaxy Digital leads talks to raise $1B for SOL treasury with Multicoin Capital, Jump Crypto

Galaxy Digital, Multicoin Capital, and Jump Crypto are in advanced discussions with potential backers to raise about $1 billion for Solana (SOL), according to people familiar with the matter.

The initiative, first reported by Bloomberg, would become the largest treasury devoted to the token and bring together three of the most viewed names in the cryptocurrency industry. 

This comes just 10 days after Galaxy Digital secured $1.4 billion in financing to transform its Helios facility in West Texas from crypto mining into artificial intelligence and high-performance computing infrastructure, as covered by Cryptopolitan.

Solana moves past FTX woes, treasury interest spreads 

The firms have enlisted Cantor Fitzgerald LP as lead banker for the effort. Sources said the structure could involve creating a digital asset treasury company by taking control of an unidentified publicly traded entity. Those familiar with the negotiations requested anonymity from Bloomberg, citing the sensitivity of the talks.

If completed, the deal would result in a reserve more than twice the size of the largest existing Solana-focused fund. The Solana Foundation, a nonprofit headquartered in Zug, Switzerland, has given its backing to the initiative. People familiar with the matter said the transaction is targeted to close in early September.

Solana has been on the comeback trail after nearly collapsing during the FTX implosion in late 2022. Once promoted by former FTX chief executive Sam Bankman-Fried, the network’s survival was questioned after the exchange’s collapse, and the token dropped to as low as $9 by the end of the year.

Since then, Solana has rebounded by over 2,066% to trade at around $195, becoming one of the most popular blockchains for issuing memecoins, more commonly described as speculative tokens whose performance is based on social media trends.

At the time of this publication, the token, ranked as the sixth-largest cryptocurrency by market capitalization, has almost doubled from April lows of $105, although it is still below a January peak.

Multicoin Capital and Jump Crypto were among the earliest institutional backers of the Solana ecosystem. Last year, Galaxy Digital raised roughly $620 million for a fund to purchase Solana from the FTX estate.

Corporate vehicles race for Solana exposure

The planned billion-dollar venture is not the first attempt to establish SOL treasury companies. Upexi Inc., a Florida-based e-commerce firm that changed its focus to Solana in April, reported holding more than 2 million tokens worth about $415 million.

The new consortium will also take over Toronto-listed SOL Strategies, a company that recently filed for a Nasdaq listing under the ticker STKE. The filing included a 40-F form, required for Canadian companies seeking to offer securities in the United States.

SOL Strategies Inc. is seen as more conservative in acquiring tokens but “forward-thinking” in its approach to ecosystem development.

In a note to investors published in June, Cantor Fitzgerald analyst Thomas Shinske said the blockchain is being considered by financial firms beyond its feasibility for making memecoin.

Shinske said Solana’s utility could expand as tokenized securities become more widely adopted. He also mentioned staking as an advantage for Solana-based treasury vehicles, adding that returns from staking combined with treasury operations could allow Solana-focused firms to grow faster on a per-share basis than Bitcoin-focused treasuries.

“Combining staking with treasury operations should result in Solana treasury companies growing SOL per share faster than BTC treasury companies growing BTC per share, all else equal,” Shinske wrote.

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