The Crypto Treasury Pump: Insiders Cashing Out Billions?

The crypto treasury company trend has exploded since MicroStrategy first bought bitcoin in 2020. Companies like SharpLink Gaming (SBET), which announced a massive $425 million private placement to fund an ethereum treasury, and dozens of others have followed suit. Yet despite billions flowing into these vehicles, crypto prices haven't moved much beyond what you'd expect from regular market forces.

According to Founder of Youtube channel Crypto Banter and CEO of Onchain Capital Ran Neuer there’s a counterintuitive explanation for this phenomenon. In his view, these companies aren’t actually buying crypto off the open market in meaningful quantities. Ran argues they've become sophisticated vehicles for crypto natives to exit their positions at premium valuations while retail investors pay inflated prices for crypto exposure they could get cheaper elsewhere.