Pantera Capital Eyes $1.25B Raise to Create Solana Treasury Firm: Report

Pantera Capital is reportedly seeking to raise up to $1.25 billion to convert a Nasdaq-listed company into “Solana Co.,” a public vehicle designed to accumulate Solana tokens as a treasury asset.

Plans for the conversion were first detailed in a report from The Information on Tuesday, which claimed that Pantera would begin with a $500 million raise, followed by $750 million through warrants. 

It follows Pantera’s disclosure earlier this month that it has quietly deployed around $300 million into digital asset treasury (DAT) firms “across various tokens and geographies” to generate yield and grow net asset value. 

“The most important element of a DAT’s success is the long-term investment merit of the underlying token,” the company stated.

Decrypt reached out to Pantera Capital to confirm details of the planned conversion.

Pantera’s DAT portfolio spans eight cryptocurrencies, including Solana, with stakes in Twenty One Capital, DeFi Development Corp, and Sharplink Gaming, according to the company’s blockchain letter.

Earlier this week, Pantera joined ParaFi Capital in backing Sharps Technology, a Solana treasury vehicle aiming to raise more than $400 million.

Over the past few months, a series of smaller Nasdaq-listed firms have also pivoted into Solana treasuries.

DeFi Development Corp, previously known as Janover, a real estate financing platform turned AI services firm, disclosed in July that it had doubled its holdings to more than 163,000 SOL worth around $21 million.  

Classover, an edtech company, announced in June that it had purchased about 6,500 SOL as the first step in a plan backed by a $500 million convertible note program dedicated to acquiring and staking SOL.

Upexi and DeFi Development Corp have also steadily expanded their reserves through equity raises. Canadian firms such as SOL Strategies and Torrent Capital, meanwhile, hold $62 million and $6.4 million, respectively, per CoinGecko data.

To date, the total value of public Solana treasuries stands north of $695 million, representing some 0.69% of SOL’s total supply, according to data from CoinGecko.

Outsized holdings

If the proposal moves ahead, Solana Co. alone would eclipse that figure.

“The impact will not be just about size, but more about symbolism,” Shawn Young, chief analyst at MEXC Research, told Decrypt. “This would give the market an impression that Solana is moving beyond being a retail-driven chain to one with credible institutional sponsorship at scale,” he added.  

Still, the prospect of one firm holding such an outsized Solana reserve introduces a new layer of risk.

“One entity controlling that much liquidity could distort how Solana trades,” Young said, pointing to how it might result in “narrowing free float and potentially increasing volatility during periods of stress.”

This is the same debate that’s been observed in Bitcoin treasury firms, Young explained, wherein while companies such as Michael Saylor’s Strategy have “brought attention and credibility,” they have also “created a scenario where one corporate balance sheet has disproportionate influence on the narrative.”