Major Investment: BNC, a subsidiary of CEA Industries, has acquired 200,000 BNB tokens for $160 million. This makes them the largest publicly listed corporate holder of the cryptocurrency.
Strategic Shift: The Nasdaq-listed company, formerly a nicotine vape company (VAPE), has rebranded to BNC and is shifting its primary business focus to building a BNB treasury.
Future Plans: The company plans to continue acquiring BNB until its initial treasury capital is fully deployed. There's potential for an additional $750 million in capital via warrants, which could lead to a total of $1.25 billion in BNB holdings.
Reasoning for BNB: BNC's press release cited several factors for their long-term play on BNB, including deflationary token burns, increasing on-chain activity, and the potential for a BNB spot ETF.
Ecosystem Growth: The company's goal is to bring more institutional presence to the BNB ecosystem, particularly in the U.S. market, which they view as currently underrepresented.
Market Context: The move by CEA Industries is part of a broader trend of companies establishing crypto treasuries in altcoins beyond just Bitcoin and Ethereum. BNB is currently the fourth-largest cryptocurrency by market capitalization and the native token of BNB Chain, the third-largest chain by total value locked.
Stock Performance: Following the announcement of its BNB strategy, CEA Industries' stock (now BNC) has increased by over 92%.