SharpLink Gaming is making a big name for itself in the crypto world. The company recently boosted its Ether (ETH) holdings, now sitting on nearly 800,000 units. That’s a huge stash, worth more than $3.6 billion. Just last week, SharpLink added another 56,533 ETH to its treasury. This move cost the company about $252 million.
This big jump means SharpLink, which trades on Nasdaq under the ticker SBET, now holds 797,704 ETH. The company has been building up its crypto reserves for months, even bringing Joe Lubin onto its board of directors. To pay for some of this crypto spree, SharpLink used $360.9 million it raised from a stock sale program. That program wrapped up on August 24. They still have about $200 million in cash ready for even more Ether purchases. This strategy clearly positions them as a major player in the corporate digital asset game, according to reports from The Block.
Companies are Stockpiling Ether
SharpLink isn’t alone in this trend. More and more public companies are adding large amounts of Ether to their balance sheets. This shows a growing shift towards using cryptocurrencies as a key part of their money strategy.
Take BitMine, for example, founded by Tom Lee of Fundstrat. BitMine has gathered an impressive 1.7 million ETH, which is worth about $8.2 billion. This makes them the biggest corporate holder of the digital currency. By August 22, the total amount of Ether held by companies had gone past $12 billion. That’s nearly half the $28 billion managed by spot Ethereum ETFs, which have been around longer.
Beyond just buying ETH, SharpLink also announced a plan last week to buy back up to $1.5 billion of its own shares. The company thinks this makes good sense when its stock price is at or below the value of its Ether holdings. This plan aims to offset the effect of issuing new shares. It also helps boost investor confidence during a time when both the stock market and crypto markets can be quite unpredictable.
Staking Rewards and ETH Focus
The Minneapolis-based company also shared that it’s putting some of its Ether reserves to work through staking. Staking lets them earn extra income. Since they started their crypto treasury program on June 2, they’ve picked up 1,799 ETH in rewards. That’s worth more than $8 million.
SharpLink highlighted how much more focused they are on ETH now. Their “cash-converted concentration in ETH” has doubled since June. It now makes up over 4.0% of their balance sheet. This shows a huge shift away from traditional assets.
Market Performance Check
Even with all this success in gathering digital assets, SharpLink’s stock market performance hasn’t matched Ether’s climb. Data from Yahoo Finance shows that SBET shares have dropped around 65% since early June.
On the flip side, the price of ETH has shot up more than 80% in the last 60 days. This difference shows the risks that come with public companies. It also highlights how well Ethereum can keep its appeal, even as more companies jump into the corporate crypto game.
The company listed on Nasdaq under the ticker SBET detailed that it financed part of the purchase thanks to USD $360,9 million obtained through its program of issuance of shares “at-the-market”, finalized the 24 of August. Additionally, it maintains around USD $200 million in cash available for future acquisitions of Ether, consolidating itself as one of the main players within the corporate treasuries of digital assets, details The Block.