Original Block unicorn Block unicorn June 5, 2025 17:04 Chongqing Author: Token Dispatch, Prathik Desai
Article compiled by: Block unicorn
Preface
The Solana treasury movement has evolved from a trickle to a torrent.
About four months ago, we reported that Sol Strategies was busy building a Solana fund management company. Today, competition has become fiercer and quite meme-like.
In the category of 'unexpected happenings,' a case of a publicly traded company partnering with a meme coin to operate blockchain infrastructure is quite remarkable. Just under two weeks ago, another Solana fund management company, DeFi Development Corp (DFDV), partnered with the Solana meme coin Bonk.
They are not kidding.
A few days ago, DFDV announced it would allocate part of its SOL holdings to liquid staking tokens (LST), which can be used for DeFi applications or transfers while earning yields and staking rewards.
Corporate fund management has fully realized crypto-native operations. From companies buying Bitcoin, to operating validator nodes, collaborating with meme coins, and now pioneering liquid staking strategies.
In this article, we will delve into the significance of holding Solana amidst the rush of most other companies (including those connected to U.S. President Donald Trump) flocking to Bitcoin.
The craze
DeFi Development Corporation (a real estate company, renamed Janover in April 2025) made its largest Solana purchase on May 12, adding 172,670 SOL to its treasury. This brings its total holdings to 609,233 SOL, worth over $100 million.
This accounts for one-third of the company's total market capitalization.
The stock market reacted enthusiastically.
Since its rebranding, DFDV's stock has skyrocketed 30 times in the past two months, primarily due to its focus on investing in Solana.
Image source: @TradingView
Canadian company Sol Strategies is also not backing down, having submitted a preliminary prospectus to local securities regulators to raise up to $1 billion to further invest in the Solana ecosystem.
New participants continue to join.
The Nasdaq-listed EdTech company Classover Holdings has planned a Solana-centered strategy and has secured $400 million in funding; meanwhile, DIGITALX has increased its SOL holdings to accelerate staking yields.
Why the enthusiasm? There are many reasons.
Does the SOL treasury really make sense?
Yield gaming
The difference between the Solana treasury and Bitcoin strategies is that they can actually generate returns.
DIGITALX emphasizes its annual staking yield of 7-9%, expecting an additional $800,000 in revenue annually. In contrast, Bitcoin's yield is 0%, and you begin to see its appeal.
These companies are not satisfied with simple staking. They are fully building infrastructure. DeFi Development's liquid staking initiative represents the next stage of evolution: earning yields while maintaining liquidity, truly having your cake and eating it too.
With this move, the company became the first publicly traded company to hold Solana liquid staking tokens.
Collaboration with BONK? This would allow both parties to jointly increase delegated staking, i.e., the number of Solana tokens committed to their validator nodes, and share rewards in the process. This is a blend of community participation and fund management.
'DFDV and BONK are each leaders in their respective fields. Through collaboration, we can benefit from each other’s unique positioning and brand recognition,' said Parker White, CIO and COO of DeFi Development, to Decrypt.
Validators and governance roles
These companies are not just buying and holding SOL—they are becoming infrastructure providers.
On May 5, DeFi Development Corp announced a final agreement to acquire a Solana validator business with an average staking of about 500,000 SOL ($75.5 million).
This creates a 'flywheel' effect for companies: reinvesting yields to accumulate more SOL, thereby further expanding validator capacity. This contrasts sharply with Michael Saylor's Strategy.
By operating validator nodes, companies can:
Influencing network governance
Establishing relationships with projects
Possibly incubating or investing in Solana-based startups
Creating additional income sources beyond treasury appreciation
The story of speed and scale
Solana's transaction processing speed is faster, and transaction costs are much lower than competitors like Ethereum. This opens up possibilities that Bitcoin cannot match for companies not solely focused on capital value.
Unlike Bitcoin, which is primarily used for transferring value across networks, Solana can support decentralized finance applications and more scenarios such as consumer applications and gaming.
Different gameplay
Each company's strategy in this game varies:
DeFi Development Corp is a radical innovator.
In addition to accumulating 609,233 SOL, they are also pioneering liquid staking and meme coin partnerships. DeFi Development Corp CEO Joseph Onorati told Decrypt: 'Breaking $100 million in Solana purchases is a significant milestone—but it's just the beginning.'
SOL Strategies adopts an institutional strategy, focusing on becoming a top staking platform with mature fund management strategies. Their submitted $1 billion prospectus indicates that their ambitions go far beyond mere accumulation.
DIGITALX showcases yield optimization strategies, meticulously calculating staking yields, and emphasizing their earning potential to shareholders. They view SOL as a dividend stock.
Risk profile
However, it’s not that simple. Let’s have a dose of reality.
First, the macro trap: these strategies thrive on cheap capital. Most SOL buyers raise funds through convertible bonds or equity financing tools. When liquidity dries up—and it eventually will—everything comes to an end.
Secondly, the regulatory time bomb: Marco Santori stated that the company's SOL fund management strategy allows it to operate in a way that 'simple, passive' funds cannot achieve. This is fine until regulators think your 'fund management' looks like an unregistered investment fund.
Thirdly, yield compression is imminent. As more validators join, the enticing 7-9% yield will shrink. This is basic economics: an increase in validator supply means reduced returns for each validator.
The infrastructure burden is also real. Running validator nodes is not passive income—it’s an operational business that requires technical overhead, upgrade requirements, and faces significant downside risks. Miss the update window? That’s money lost.
Dan Kang stated on the Lightspeed podcast that DeFi Development Corp's trading volatility is as high as 700%. This makes Bitcoin look like a stablecoin. Given Solana's history of network outages, you're betting on both price and reliability.
The Maximal Extractable Value (MEV) game will ultimately benefit the largest players, just like on Ethereum.
There’s also competition. As of May 21, the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) has not approved any Solana spot ETFs, but once approved, these fund management companies will lose their unique selling advantage. If you can buy a Solana ETF, why buy DFDV? But the same goes for Strategy betting on Bitcoin, doesn't it?
Our perspective
The ongoing phenomenon of Solana fund management indicates that it has transcended the past passive balance sheet allocations. They have transformed into active infrastructure investments that can generate real returns.
Its innovation lies in packaging complex DeFi operations into a corporate structure that people are familiar with.
But we must be clear: this is a high-wire act. These companies are simultaneously betting on Solana's price, network stability, validator economics, and their own operational excellence. When it works, it’s wonderful—one asset can provide multiple income streams. When it fails, you have to explain to shareholders why your 'treasury' needs a DevOps team.
Companies that can efficiently scale validator operations while addressing the impending yield compression will benefit the most from this game. Meanwhile, those expecting today's high yields to last into tomorrow and beyond are making a miscalculated error.
When comparing Bitcoin's 50% annual return to Solana's almost zero return over the past 12 months, it reminds us that returns are not everything. But for companies willing to accept operational complexity for extra returns, the Solana treasury offers something Bitcoin can never provide: cash flow from day one.
This is treasury 2.0—a strategy that allows your balance sheet to run code, earn yields, and occasionally collaborate with dog-themed cryptocurrencies.
