Is crypto lending making a comeback?

Mill City Ventures is committing $450 million to Sui, positioning itself as a bridge between traditional finance and blockchain’s next wave. With elite backers like Galaxy and Pantera, the move may accelerate Sui’s path to mainstream institutional use. On July…

Cathie Wood’s ARK Invest has named SOL Strategies as its new Solana staking provider, marking a deeper move into crypto-native yield strategies. The decision will see ARK transition the ARK Digital Asset Revolutions Fund’s Solana validator operations to the infrastructure operated by SOL Strategies, a publicly traded Canadian company, and the institutional custodian BitGo. ARK Shifts Its 3.6M Solana Staking to SOL Strategies, Citing Institutional Infrastructure The ARK Digital Asset Revolutions Fund, launched in 2020, invests in 10 to 12 digital assets with a long-term strategy focused on four- to five-year market cycles. As of now, the fund has over 3.59 million SOL delegated, worth approximately C$888 million (US$647.2 million), spread across more than 5,700 unique wallets. Only 12% of the staked assets come from ARK’s treasury, with the majority contributed by third-party investors. 🚨 ALERT 🚨 @ARKInvest Digital Asset Revolutions Fund has selected SOL Strategies as their new Solana staking provider. @CathieDWood and her team chose our enterprise-grade infrastructure to power their institutional staking operations. This is validation. 🧵 pic.twitter.com/qLpwkQiPlu — SOL Strategies (@solstrategies_) July 28, 2025 “Being selected as ARK’s Solana staking provider represents significant validation of our institutional infrastructure and market position,” said Leah Wald, CEO of SOL Strategies. “Cathie Wood and her team at ARK are widely respected for their crypto and tech investing. Their confidence in our validator capabilities reinforces our commitment to providing best-in-class staking solutions for institutional clients.” Speaking earlier this year at Solana Accelerate, Wood singled out Solana’s design as a key differentiator. “Solana’s infrastructure is much more agile,” she noted. “At ARK, one of the things we look for in new technology is falling costs and accelerating uptake, and that’s certainly Solana.” While staking remains attractive for its passive yield potential, it does come with risks. Validators that misbehave or go offline can be penalized through slashing, leading to losses for stakers. According to Solana Compass , over 403 million SOL, worth more than $73.5 billion, are currently staked on the network. For SOL Strategies, the partnership with ARK comes amid a period of expansion and financial recalibration. The company reported a $3.5 million loss in Q2 2025, though it saw strong growth in staking and validation revenue. 🚨JUST IN: Speaking at @Solana Accelerate, @ARKInvest CEO @CathieDWood said: “One of the things we look for in new technology is falling costs and accelerating uptake—and that’s certainly Solana.” pic.twitter.com/Ce9dSwcsIS — SolanaFloor (@SolanaFloor) May 23, 2025 In March 2025, SOL Strategies acquired three Solana validators , including Laine, one of the network’s most established operators. It also took ownership of the validator analytics platform Stakewiz.com. 🛠️ SOL Strategies ( @solstrategies_ ) finalized a $24M acquisition of Laine and Stakewiz in March, increasing its SOL stake to over 3.3 million. It also voted for the SIMD-228 proposal. #Solana #Web3 https://t.co/u56Ja92Vi2 — Cryptonews.com (@cryptonews) April 8, 2025 In April, the company partnered with Pudgy Penguins to launch the PENGU Validator, which offers returns between 7% and 11% based on current network conditions. 🐧 @solstrategies_ teams up with @pudgypenguins to launch the PENGU Validator on Solana, boosting staking rewards and strengthening blockchain infrastructure. #Solana #CryptoStaking https://t.co/JKYWueCOCG — Cryptonews.com (@cryptonews) April 15, 2025 That same month, the company announced a $500 million convertible note facility with ATW Partners to acquire and stake SOL tokens through validators managed by SOL Strategies. As of June 2, SOL Strategies reported holding more than 420,000 Solana (SOL) tokens, worth approximately $61 million. The partnership with ARK adds another high-profile name to its validator business, solidifying its presence in the institutional staking market. SOL Strategies Moves Toward Nasdaq Listing with Share Consolidation Plan According to our sources, SOL Strategies’ Nasdaq listing is expected in the first half of August as part of its expansion into the U.S. market. On June 19, the company, which currently trades on the Canadian Securities Exchange (CSE), filed a Form 40-F registration statement with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission as it seeks to list its common shares on the Nasdaq Capital Market under the ticker “STKE”. SOL Strategies announces Board approval of a 1-for-8 share consolidation, previously authorized at the June 2025 AGM. The move supports meeting Nasdaq listing requirements. Subject to CSE approval. Read more here: https://t.co/PxZV0G4Aqe FAQs: https://t.co/ILVj8Rh9JQ pic.twitter.com/pLgiUtZlEf — SOL Strategies (@solstrategies_) July 23, 2025 To meet Nasdaq’s minimum share price requirements, SOL Strategies announced a 1-for-8 share consolidation on July 23. The reverse stock split, approved during the company’s annual general meeting in June, is expected to take effect around August 5, pending final approval from the CSE. Currently, the company has 172.2 million common shares outstanding, along with more than 12 million warrants and 5.3 million stock options. Despite its upcoming U.S. listing, SOL Strategies will continue to operate as a “foreign private issuer” under SEC guidelines. This designation allows the firm to follow Canadian corporate governance standards, which include maintaining a board structure different from that required for U.S.-based companies listed on Nasdaq. Time to update the insider buying for SolStrategies Tony added today 🟣250,000 shares @ 115,000 July 24th 🟣500,000 shares @ 121,000 July 24th Total insider buying for the last 30 days 🟣51,400 @ $2.34 June 23rd 🟣250,000 @ $1.99 July 21st 🟣75,000 @ $1.99… https://t.co/NBdSeUoenV pic.twitter.com/Znd9g5DdUQ — Gally Sama (@hdcharting) July 24, 2025 Meanwhile, investor confidence appears to be on the rise. Insider buying has picked up, with investor Tony Guoga acquiring more than 1.25 million shares since late June. His latest purchase, 750,000 shares, was made on July 24, further fueling speculation around the company’s U.S. expansion plans.

Metaplanet , the Tokyo-listed firm rapidly evolving into one of Asia’s most aggressive corporate Bitcoin holders, added another 780 Bitcoin to its treasury on July 28. The latest acquisition brings its total holdings to 17,132 BTC, marking a sharp climb from the 13,350 reported just a month ago. The company disclosed the purchase in a filing on Monday, noting it paid an average of 17.52m yen (US$119,136) per Bitcoin, amounting to a total investment of 13.67b yen ($92.93m). Since launching its Bitcoin Treasury Operations in Dec. 2024, Metaplanet has steadily accumulated Bitcoin using proceeds from capital market activities and operating income. *Metaplanet Acquires Additional 780 $BTC , Total Holdings Reach 17,132 BTC* pic.twitter.com/0gw3HwpUCH — Metaplanet Inc. (@Metaplanet_JP) July 28, 2025 Metaplanet Trading Volume Doubles in Crypto-Fueled Frenzy The new purchase comes as the firm’s share trading activity on the Tokyo Stock Exchange has surged . Trading volume in Metaplanet stock hit 1.86 trillion yen ($12.65b) in June, nearly doubling the 997.6b yen ($6.78b) recorded in May, according to TSE data. The sharp rise reflects growing investor interest as the company leans further into its digital asset strategy. In the past three months alone, Metaplanet’s Bitcoin holdings have grown by over 13,000 BTC. This expansion has been financed through multiple rounds of share issuances and bond redemptions. On July 4 and again on July 14, the company redeemed a combined 12.75b yen ($86.7m) from its 19th series of bonds, using funds raised through the exercise of stock acquisition rights. Those rights have translated into rapid share dilution. Between June 30 and July 28, the company issued tens of millions of new shares through its 20th to 22nd series of stock acquisition programs. Fully diluted shares outstanding now stand at nearly 866m. Metaplanet’s Q2 BTC Yield Surges to 129.4% To evaluate whether this aggressive capital strategy benefits shareholders, Metaplanet tracks several custom metrics like BTC Yield, BTC Gain and BTC ¥ Gain. These indicators aim to measure how much Bitcoin the company has accumulated relative to its expanding share base and to estimate the hypothetical accretion had no new shares been issued. From July 1 to July 28 alone, Metaplanet’s BTC Yield stood at 22.5%. In yen terms, that gain equates to more than 52.5b yen ($357m). Previous quarters have seen even stronger growth, with a 129.4% BTC Yield in Q2 2025 and an eye-popping 309.8% in Q4 2024. The average purchase price across all 17,132 Bitcoin now sits at roughly 14.78m yen ($100,504) per coin. That number has steadily risen alongside Metaplanet’s appetite for the asset, up from 12.94m yen ($87,992) at the end of March. Crypto Metrics Not a Substitute for Cash Flow, Metaplanet Says The company acknowledges that these metrics are not substitutes for traditional financial indicators such as cash flow or net income. However, it argues they reflect the success of its strategy to grow Bitcoin per share. It believes this metric will become increasingly valuable to long-term investors. Metaplanet has not declared any dividends so far. Instead, it has reminded shareholders that owning its stock does not mean direct ownership of the underlying Bitcoin. Additionally, the company has cautioned that its custom KPIs do not account for debt obligations or preferred stock. As a result, these metrics may overstate gains if taken outside the broader financial context. Still, Metaplanet’s move stands out in Japan, where few listed companies have embraced Bitcoin on this scale.