Behind the Listed Companies' Crypto Reserve Strategy: Which Crypto VCs Are Making Moves?

OriginalAuthor: Zen, PANews

In recent years, an increasing number of listed companies have incorporated crypto assets into their balance sheets, from MicroStrategy's early bet on Bitcoin, to Trump Media & Technology Group raising $2.5 billion to build a Bitcoin treasury, and several traditional industrial and tech giants dipping their toes into stablecoins or Ethereum strategic reserves. According to BitcoinTreasuries, as of July 17, 154 listed companies had adopted Bitcoin strategic reserves; another report released by DWF Labs at the end of June this year pointed out that listed companies have cumulatively invested up to $76 billion in crypto assets.

Beyond the crypto-friendly policies of the Trump administration and the exemplary role of MicroStrategy, behind this wave are crypto venture capitals and Web3 funds focused on institutional-level digital asset layouts—they provide listed companies with comprehensive solutions including cryptocurrency purchases, tokenized equity, stablecoin settlements, and on-chain treasury management through leading PIPE (Private Investment in Public Equity), convertible bonds, reverse mergers, and other methods.

The main institutions driving the crypto adoption among listed companies have expanded from early players like Pantera Capital, Animoca Brands, Sora Ventures to include DWF Labs, BigBrainHoldings, GSR, BainCapitalCrypto, etc., with more and more crypto VCs joining this trend recently.

Pantera Capital

Pantera has invested in several DAT (Digital Asset Treasury) companies, the most notable being the financial services company Twenty One Capital (NASDAQ: CEP) led by long-time Bitcoin evangelist Jack Mallers, with Pantera being the institution that invested the most in its PIPE financing round. Twenty One is attempting to emulate MSTR's strategy and has received support from three industry giants: Tether, SoftBank, and Cantor Fitzgerald. Pantera pointed out that Twenty One's size is just right to utilize all capital market tools, while its market capitalization is also small, allowing it to flexibly achieve BPS growth at a faster rate than MSTR and trade at a higher premium.

Additionally, Pantera led the investment in DeFi Development Corp (NASDAQ: DFDV, formerly Janover), which started the DAT trend in the U.S. DFDV, led by CEO Joseph Onorati and CIO Parker White, is borrowing MSTR's strategy but applying it to Solana. Pantera believes Solana is an interesting alternative to BTC for several reasons: its upside potential may be greater than BTC due to its shorter maturity period; its volatility is higher than BTC, meaning higher returns can be achieved by leveraging this volatility; its staking rewards can partially promote the growth of SOL per share; and Solana has more untapped demand due to the current lack of alternatives.

Beyond supporting listed companies holding Bitcoin and Sol treasuries, Pantera has also invested in Sharplink Gaming (SBET), the first U.S. Ethereum digital asset financial company. SBET, led by Consensys, a software company headed by Ethereum co-founder Joe Lubin, launched an ETH treasury strategy, with Pantera having collaborated with its team for over a decade.

Galaxy Digital

In May 2025, Trump Media announced raising approximately $2.5 billion through the issuance of $1.5 billion in common stock and $1 billion in convertible bonds for Bitcoin treasury construction. Galaxy Digital not only served as the financial advisor for this debt and equity financing but was also one of the lead underwriters, designing the financing structure for the company and committing to providing liquidity support.

Previously, Galaxy Digital had assisted non-crypto-native companies like GameStop and AMC in conducting crypto payment and treasury experiments and served as an advisor in several SPAC mergers, promoting the inclusion of digital assets in the strategic asset allocation of target companies. Between 2024 and 2025, Galaxy participated in over $800 million in crypto-related financing for listed companies, covering equity investment, debt financing, and advisory services.

Animoca Brands

In July 2025, Animoca announced signing a non-binding memorandum of understanding (MOU) with the catering and packaged food company DayDayCook (DDC). According to the joint statement released by both parties, Animoca will invest up to $100 million in Bitcoin into DDC's Bitcoin treasury yield strategy. Animoca's co-founder Yat Siu will also join DDC's "Bitcoin Visionary Council," providing strategic guidance for its treasury management and yield optimization. DDC Enterprise announced its Bitcoin reserve plan in May this year, aiming to purchase 5,000 Bitcoins within three years and bought 21 Bitcoins for its corporate treasury in the same month.

Moreover, as a well-known investor in the Web3 industry that rose during the NFT boom, Animoca itself is seeking opportunities to go public in the U.S. According to the Financial Times, Yat Siu stated that Animoca is planning to go public in New York, aiming to seize the "unique timing" provided by the Trump administration's approach to digital asset regulation. With the decline of NFT and GameFi projects, apart from investments, Animoca Brands' latest financial report also shows its shift towards advisory services, covering token advisory, tokenomics, marketing, listing advisory, node operations, and trading services.

Sora Ventures

In December 2024, Sora Ventures announced the launch of a $150 million fund aimed at replicating MicroStrategy's Bitcoin treasury management model for Asian listed companies. The fund will focus on listed companies in markets such as Japan, Hong Kong, Thailand, Taiwan, and South Korea. The first beneficiary case was Metaplanet, listed on the Tokyo Stock Exchange, whose stock price surged over 1000% in 2024, becoming the best-performing stock on the Tokyo Stock Exchange.

In May this year, Sora Ventures entered the public market through a strategic merger with Nasdaq-listed Hong Kong luxury goods distributor Top Win International and was renamed AsiaStrateg. This merger provided TopWin with Sora's Bitcoin expertise, with the latter participating in TopWin's investments and treasury management. TopWin has announced the adoption of a Bitcoin reserve strategy and plans to use $150 million to support Bitcoin treasury projects for at least ten listed companies in the Asian market.

Recently, a Bitcoin investor alliance including SoraVentures, AsiaStrategy, Metaplanet CEO Simon Gerovich, and South Korean investment institution KCGI raised approximately $25 million through a private placement of about 58,862,249 new shares to SGA, a KOSDAQ-listed software service provider in South Korea. SGA plans to use the new capital to support its daily operations and initiate new business plans in the digital asset sector.

DWF Labs

In June 2025, fitness equipment and digital fitness service company Interactive Strength (Nasdaq: TRNR) announced signing a financing framework for a "FET Token Treasury" with a total size of up to $500 million, with the first $55 million jointly invested by ATW Partners and DWF Labs. The funds will be specifically used to purchase Fetch.ai's FET tokens through the BitGo platform as on-chain allocation assets on its balance sheet. TRNR claimed that if the plan is fully implemented, it is expected to have the largest publicly listed crypto asset library focused on AI tokens. According to a research article officially released by DWF Labs, it will continue to explore new opportunities to construct similar trades in the U.S. stock market.

PrimitiveVentures

According to an article by PrimitiveVentures, since early 2025, the institution has begun focusing on "Digital Asset Reserve PIPE" as a key research direction, systematically screening and participating in various representative transactions to provide capital support to listed companies with Ethereum-centric crypto asset reserve strategies. Primitive Ventures also participated in the $425 million private equity financing completed by SharpLink Gaming in May this year. Primitive believes that BTC-based strategies mainly rely on financing to purchase coins, lacking self-generated income from assets, with higher leverage risks. In contrast, SBET has the potential to directly utilize ETH's staking rewards and the DeFi ecosystem to achieve compound growth on-chain, creating real value for shareholders.

Big Brain Holdings

U.S. crypto venture capital fund Big Brain Holdings recently became a significant supporter of consumer product development, manufacturing, and distribution company Upexi (NASDAQ: UPXI). In July 2025, Upexi announced a $150 million convertible bond issuance, with the issuer using locked Solana (SOL) tokens as collateral, with a 2% coupon rate for 24 months. Big Brain Holdings was the lead investor in this note financing. Upon completion of the financing, Upexi is expected to hold approximately 1.65 million SOL, exceeding the previously disclosed 735,000 Solana, significantly increasing the company's on-chain treasury size.

GSR

Upexi's expansion into the cryptocurrency sector dates back at least three months—in April 2025, GSR led a $100 million private placement (PIPE) to Upexi, with the funds used to purchase and stake Solana tokens. This move helped Upexi establish a Solana-centric crypto treasury. Public reports show that after the announcement of this transaction, Upexi's stock price rose by about 700%, highlighting the market's enthusiastic response to the company's digital asset strategy. GSR stated that this transaction reflects the growing demand from traditional capital for high-quality crypto assets. Additionally, GSR also participated in SharpLink's $425 million private financing.

Other Participants

In the $100 million private placement led by GSR for Upexi and the $425 million private placement led by Consensys for SharpLink Gaming, many well-known crypto VCs participated in the investment.

Furthermore, in the "largest initial financing in the history of listed Bitcoin financial reserve companies" completed by ProCap Financial, several crypto venture capital firms also participated. ProCap Financial was formed by the merger of ProCap BTC, a private company of former Morgan Creek partner Anthony Pompliano, and Nasdaq SPAC Columbus Circle Capital. Pompliano also announced the completion of $750 million in financing, focusing on purchasing Bitcoin and developing profitable financial products based on holdings.

According to public information, in three major private placements:

• Institutions participating in both SharpLink Gaming and Upexi private placements include: GSR, WhiteStarCapital, HivemindCapital

• Institutions participating in both SharpLink Gaming and ProCap Financial include: ParaFiCapital, ArringtonCapital

• Institutions participating only in Upexi private placement include: BigBrainHoldings, Anagram, DelphiVentures, Maelstrom, ArthurHayes family office, Borderless, MorganCreek, EluneCapital, DeltaBlockchainFund

• Institutions participating only in ProCap Financial private placement include: MagnetarCapital, WoodlinePartnersLP, AnsonFunds, RKCapital, OfftheChainCapital, Blockchain.com, BSQCapitalPartners, FalconX

• Institutions participating only in SharpLink Gaming private placement include: ElectricCapital, PanteraCapital, GalaxyDigital, Hypersphere, PrimitiveVentures, RepublicDigital

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