Canadian listed company SOL Strategies Inc. announced on April 23, 2025, that it has signed an independent agreement with ATW Partners on the same day to establish a convertible note financing mechanism of up to $500 million, with the raised funds specifically used to purchase SOL tokens, which will be staked through validator nodes directly operated by SOL Strategies, with the generated revenue shared by both parties.
According to the company's financing mechanism, the first batch of convertible notes with a principal of $20 million will be issued, with the possibility of subsequent batch withdrawals of up to $480 million under specific conditions. The first delivery is expected to be completed around May 1, 2025, subject to routine delivery conditions. Under this innovative structure, note interest will be paid in SOL tokens, calculated as 85% of the staking revenue generated by SOL tokens purchased through this mechanism and staked by SOL Strategies.
Who is SOL Strategies
SOL Strategies Inc., originally named Cypherpunk Holdings Inc., was established in 2002, headquartered in Toronto, Canada, listed on the Italian Stock Exchange in 1998, and transferred to the Canadian Securities Exchange in 2012 with the code HODL.
On July 9, 2024, Leah Wald became the CEO. Under her leadership, the company fully focused on the Solana blockchain ecosystem, listing SOL tokens as core assets on the balance sheet, operating cutting-edge validator nodes, and developing sophisticated smart staking tools. To reflect this strategic transformation, the company officially renamed from Cypherpunk Holdings Inc. to SOL Strategies Inc. on September 9, 2024. The company submitted a listing application to NASDAQ in late 2024 but has not yet completed the listing process. Currently, its stocks are traded on the Canadian Securities Exchange and in the US OTC market under the code CYFRF.
After establishing the transformation goal, SOL Strategies began increasing Solana assets, reducing Bitcoin exposure, and disposing of non-core assets. According to its Q1 2025 financial report, SOL holdings have increased from zero to 267,151 tokens, while Bitcoin holdings have been gradually reduced from 215.37 tokens on September 30, 2023, to 56.25 tokens on September 30, 2024, and further reduced to 3.21 tokens currently, reflecting the strategic shift of resources towards the Solana ecosystem. Additionally, the company liquidated Animoca Brands shares, realizing a $1.8 million gain, and reconfigured funds to core business areas by selling other non-core assets.
Besides replacing core assets, SOL Strategies has made significant progress and stable growth in validator node acquisition, income, and staking business:
In terms of validator node acquisition and growth, as of March 3, 2025, the company's validator nodes staked 1,653,752 SOL tokens, a 1434% increase from the end of 2024, with 239,607 SOL tokens being the company's own. These validator nodes are optimized for high scalability, high availability, and competitive yields, ensuring operational efficiency;
Regarding staking business income growth, out of 239,623 SOL tokens held by SOL Strategies, 239,607 tokens are specifically staked in its self-operated high-performance validator nodes, achieving a 137% significant growth from the 101,200 staked tokens on September 30, 2024. These staked SOL tokens generate an annual staking revenue of 12,800 SOL, with an average validator node annual yield of approximately 7%.
In terms of validator node income, from January 1, 2025 (the first day SOL Strategies fully controlled three Solana validator nodes), the annual validator node income reached 26,512 SOL. This income comes from commissions generated by SOL tokens delegated to SOL Strategies' high-performance validator nodes by the company and third parties.
Are Listed Companies Flocking to Invest, and Is Solana's Spring Coming?
Perhaps influenced by Canada's approval of a staking-based SOL ETF, a large amount of capital has flowed into the SOL ecosystem this week, and SOL Strategies is not the first company to do a "SOL version of MicroStrategy".
On April 21, crypto trading and investment company GSR announced leading a $100 million private equity investment in Nasdaq-listed Upexi, Inc. Upexi is a brand owner focused on consumer goods development, manufacturing, and distribution. This investment was made after Upexi announced a strategic transformation to a crypto-based financial strategy, aimed at creating long-term value and returns for shareholders. Upexi has committed to developing a Solana financial strategy, including Solana accumulation and staking. Subsequently, Upexi's stock price rose 659.91% to $17.25, reflecting the market's positive attitude towards the Solana strategy.
Additionally, on April 22, DeFi Development Corporation (Nasdaq: JNVR) announced the purchase of 88,164 SOL tokens worth approximately $11.5 million. On April 23, it purchased another 65,305 SOL worth $9.9 million, increasing its total holdings to 317,273 SOL, valued at $48.2 million.
As the first and largest North American listed company purely focused on the Solana ecosystem, SOL Strategies has built a broader pathway between traditional finance and blockchain innovation, providing investors with a scalable and compliant Solana ecosystem investment channel that can continuously help develop and expand the Solana ecosystem.
SOL Strategies has strategic similarities with MicroStrategy. MicroStrategy became a way for investors to indirectly invest in Bitcoin by holding large amounts of Bitcoin as core assets on its balance sheet. Similarly, SOL Strategies provides investors with an indirect opportunity to invest in Solana by holding SOL and operating validator nodes, with both offering traditional investors a way to access cryptocurrencies through publicly listed companies.
However, SOL Strategies not only holds SOL but also actively participates in the Solana ecosystem by operating validator nodes and investing in Solana projects to obtain additional revenue, which in turn can feed back to the company's asset value. As SOL Strategies CEO Leah Wald says, SOL Strategies is the largest financing mechanism in the Solana ecosystem, with each investment instantly generating revenue, simultaneously enhancing company assets and supporting validator node business development.
Solana's new money printer seems to be starting up. With the SOL ETF approved in Canada, the SOL ecosystem's expectations are gradually improving, the meme sector is becoming active, and traditional financial capital is flowing in massively. Whether it's SOL Strategies' $500 million financing, GSR's $100 million investment in UPXI, or DeFi Development Corporation's purchase of over $20 million worth of SOL in two days, all indicate a broader future development space for the Solana ecosystem. When will the SOL ecosystem experience its second spring? Let's wait and see.
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