Companies have rushed into cryptocurrencies on an unprecedented scale: this week, corporations announced plans to acquire digital assets worth over $7.8 billion. Such a massive corporate assault on cryptocurrencies, especially altcoins, has not been seen in a long time.

Cointelegraph analyzed statements from 16 companies since July 28 that either announced purchase plans or raised funds for investments in cryptocurrencies. The main target of the investments was [REDACTED]

Ethereum is the leader in corporate investments

At least five public companies have purchased or promised to acquire Ethereum worth over $3 billion — this is 45 times more than the volume released last week.

Companies betting on cryptocurrency reserves in corporate treasuries have become the latest trend on Wall Street. Traditional financiers, who are often prohibited from directly purchasing cryptocurrencies or related exchange products, are seeking ways to access the fast-growing sector.

Bitcoin miner BTCS Inc. filed plans on July 29 to sell shares worth up to $2 billion to finance future purchases of Ethereum. Joe Lubin's Sharplink Gaming, already the second-largest company with reserves in Ethereum, increased its total by purchasing ETH for $338 million in two separate deals on July 28 and August 1.

Ether Machine also caught the wave, acquiring 15,000 ETH for approximately $57 million.

Two new companies buying Ethereum were born this week: biotechnology firm 180 Life Sciences Corp rebranded to ETHZilla Corporation as part of a $425 million deal, while trading banker Fundamental Global transformed into FG Nexus in a $200 million deal.

Altcoins are also attracting corporations

Companies have also turned their attention to altcoins. The largest announcement regarding the purchase of altcoins came from Tron Inc. — a low-cost entertainment company controlled by Justin Sun. On July 28, it announced plans to raise $1 billion to purchase the Tron token.

Three more companies indicated plans to purchase Solana tokens closely linked to the cryptocurrency exchange Binance.

The most notable reserve firm formed this week was CEA Industries — a Canadian electronic cigarette manufacturer that became a buyer of BNB after being acquired by investment firms 10X Capital and YZi Labs. The latter once referred to itself as the family office of Binance co-founder Changpeng Zhao.

The company plans to raise at least $500 million with the possibility of unlocking up to $1.25 billion to purchase BNB, which reportedly belonged mainly to Zhao and Binance.

On July 31, technology company Cemtrex Inc. announced the purchase of SOL for $1 million with plans to expand to $10 million, while on July 28, lender Mill City Ventures III completed a $450 million deal to transition to purchasing Sui.

Cryptocurrency reserves exceeded $100 billion, but the model carries risks

Analyst Will Owens from Galaxy Research wrote in a report on July 30 that companies with digital reserves collectively hold cryptocurrencies worth over $100 billion, of which $93 billion is bitcoin.

The business model is not without risks, noted Owens. Not all companies are valued equally — investors apply 'radically different' premiums to the company's net asset value.

Michael Saylor's Strategy, for example, had an equity premium of 58%, which Owens said reflects its 'scale and maturity,' while Japanese Metaplanet traded at a premium of 179% due to its 'aggressive capital formation model.'

The analyst added that the business model 'critically depends on a sustainable premium to net asset value. If the premium collapses or, worse, turns into a discount, the model will start to break down.

'Trading reserve companies is becoming increasingly crowded,' Owens said. 'When hundreds of firms adopt the same one-way trading strategy (raise capital, buy cryptocurrencies, repeat), the model becomes structurally vulnerable. A decline in any of these three variables (investor sentiment, cryptocurrency prices, and capital market liquidity) can spell the collapse of everything else.'

Strategy is driving corporate interest in bitcoin

Bitcoin remains a popular choice for companies with cryptocurrency reserves, such as Strategy. Seven companies have offered or purchased bitcoin totaling $2.7 billion.

Strategy, formerly known as MicroStrategy, purchased 21,021 bitcoins after raising $2.5 billion from its fourth preferred stock offering STRC.

The British Smarter Web Company also spent about $26.5 million on 225 bitcoins, while Metaplanet purchased 780 bitcoins for approximately $92 million. A new bitcoin reserve company was created through the energy company ZOOZ Power Ltd. on July 29 with plans for a $180 million deal to purchase bitcoin.

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