币股风向标丨Bitcoin mining firm MARA Holdings spends over $860,000 on bulletproof armor services for executive vehicles; Bitmine has been included in the preliminary inclusion list of the FTSE Russell 1000 Index (May 19)
- Core Viewpoint: The cryptocurrency market and US-listed crypto concept stocks generally declined, but sectors such as quantum computing and commercial aerospace gained attention driven by policies and events. Meanwhile, despite the impact of macro factors (easing US-Iran tensions, potential Fed interest rate hikes), multiple listed companies are continuously adjusting their allocations of crypto assets (BTC, ETH, SOL, WLFI), reflecting long-term strategic divergences among enterprises towards digital assets.
- Key Elements:
- Quantum computing concept stocks were boosted by a $2 billion funding package from the Trump administration; the market suggests long-term attention on targets such as Infleqtion and IONQ.
- A Morgan Stanley executive pointed out that the AI merger and acquisition wave is covering the entire spectrum of fields including chips, electricity, and infrastructure, but valuations are difficult due to execution risks.
- Developments among multiple Bitcoin treasury companies: DDC increased its holdings by 200 BTC (total holdings 2,583 BTC); Nakamoto plans a reverse stock split to maintain its listing status.
- Ethereum treasury company Bitmine has been included in the preliminary list for the Russell 1000 Index, with its associated wallet withdrawing 60,000 ETH (valued at $126 million).
- Solana treasury company Solmate raised $11.4 million through a rights offering, issuing Class B common stock at $4.97 per share.
- WLFI treasury company AI Financial faces going concern risks, with a quarterly net loss of $271.5 million, primarily due to unrealized losses from the decline in WLFI token value.
- Elon Musk's SpaceX and Tesla collectively hold 30,221 BTC (valued at $2.3 billion), making them the fifth-largest corporate BTC holder.
Editor's Note: The broader crypto market experienced a decline followed by a slight rebound, leading to a widespread drop in US-listed crypto-related stocks. Separately, leveraging Trump's previous successful investment in Intel, which generated over $45 billion in profits, the Trump administration's recent provision of $2 billion in total funding to 9 quantum computing companies has injected a strong stimulant into quantum computing stocks, also providing upward momentum and price support for stocks in strategic sectors like semiconductors, AI, and quantum computing to a certain extent. We recommend long-term attention to stocks such as: Infleqtion, RGTI, QUBT, QBTS, IONQ, IBM. Furthermore, as the SpaceX IPO date approaches, the commercial space sector may see increased volatility, offering short-term trading opportunities. Finally, the situation between the US and Iran has seen a phase of de-escalation, with both sides potentially reaching a ceasefire agreement. The market is gradually absorbing the positive news. The Fed's potential interest rate hikes will also continue to impact the stock market.
For more information on the crypto and stock markets, please refer to MSX.com. (Odaily Note: The content of this article does not constitute investment advice and is for educational and exchange purposes only.)
Opinion: Morgan Stanley Exec Believes AI M&A Wave Shows a 'Full-Spectrum' Development Trend
Wally Cheng, Head of Global Technology M&A at Morgan Stanley, stated that as companies race to fill technological gaps in areas like chips, power, networking, and infrastructure, M&A transactions in the AI field are covering various scales and expanding into multiple industries. "I believe deal activity will span the full spectrum, including both private and public companies," Cheng said. While semiconductors providing computational power for AI are garnering attention for their 'tech miracle' status, the infrastructure surrounding these chips also holds immense value, including networking, storage, power, and real estate. Cheng noted that valuations in the AI industry remain "very difficult," as one must balance "unicorns and rainbow-like prospects full of imagination" against actual execution risks. Tammy Kiely, Senior Managing Director at Evercore's Technology Investment Banking group, echoed similar sentiments. She stated that potential acquirers must assess the potential value they can create while weighing the cost of missing out.
Weekly Update on Listed Crypto and Stock Companies
Representative Companies with BTC Treasuries
Michael Saylor: Bought Bonds Last Week, Not Bitcoin
Michael Saylor, founder and Executive Chairman of Bitcoin treasury company Strategy, posted last week that he bought bonds instead of Bitcoin, saying ₿itVac is charging.
Bitcoin Miner MARA Holdings Spent Over $869,000 on Vehicle Armor for Executives
The latest DEF14A compensation filing from Bitcoin miner MARA Holdings shows the company paid $4.3 million for CEO Fred Thiel's personal security-related costs under its security plan, including a one-time vehicle armor expense of $430,000 and home security installation costs of $58,000. It also paid $3.946 million for CFO Salman Khan's personal security costs, including a one-time vehicle armor expense of $438,000.
MARA Holdings' board stated that due to the company's public disclosure of holding a large amount of Bitcoin assets, executives face significantly higher risks distinct from other listed companies, making these security measures commercially relevant and necessary.
BitcoinTreasuries.NET posted that Elon Musk's SpaceX and Tesla currently hold a combined 30,221 Bitcoin, valued at $2.3 billion. If combined, they would be the fifth-largest publicly traded company BTC holder.
DDC Increases BTC Holdings by 200, Total Bitcoin Treasury Rises to 2,583
NYSE-listed Bitcoin treasury company DDC Enterprise Limited announced the purchase of an additional 200 Bitcoin, raising its total holdings to 2,583 BTC, further strengthening its crypto asset allocation on its balance sheet.
The average purchase price for this transaction was approximately $79,496 per BTC. The company stated that the purchase did not involve issuing new shares, and without diluting equity, Bitcoin holdings per 1,000 shares increased by 8.4% to 0.0543 BTC.
According to disclosures, DDC's year-to-date BTC yield has reached 36.6%. Its current scale places it among the top 30 global publicly traded companies by Bitcoin holdings. The company emphasized that the closed loop of "value-accretive financing + value-accretive allocation" is complete, and it plans to continue accumulating BTC in the coming weeks and months, with the pace determined by liquidity and balance sheet conditions, not short-term price fluctuations.
Bitcoin Treasury Company Nakamoto Plans 1:40 Reverse Stock Split to Maintain Nasdaq Listing
Bitcoin treasury company Nakamoto plans a 1:40 reverse stock split to push its share price back above $1, thereby meeting Nasdaq compliance requirements.
According to the plan, the company's outstanding shares will decrease from approximately 696.1 million to about 17.4 million post-split, expected to take effect on May 22.
Previously, Nakamoto reported a net loss of $238.8 million for its fiscal first quarter of 2026. This included approximately $107.7 million in write-downs related to acquisition options and about $102.5 million in losses from the book value decline of its 5,058 BTC holdings during the 23% drop in Bitcoin price in that quarter.
Tether Acquires SoftBank's Stake in Twenty One Capital
Tether announced it has acquired SoftBank Group's stake in Twenty One Capital (XXI), increasing its controlling interest in the company. Following the transaction, SoftBank's appointed board member at XXI has resigned per the shareholder agreement. Tether stated this move reflects its continued bullish outlook on XXI's long-term Bitcoin strategy, describing XXI as one of the most significant opportunities to "build a public company from scratch around Bitcoin." Tether CEO Paolo Ardoino noted that SoftBank provided important institutional resources and strategic perspectives during the company's early development stages, while Tether's confidence in XXI has "further strengthened."
Representative Companies with ETH Treasuries
Tom Lee: Bitmine Selected for Preliminary Inclusion List of FTSE Russell 1000 Index
Tom Lee stated that Bitmine has been selected for the preliminary inclusion list of the FTSE Russell large-cap Russell 1000 Index. He added that BMNR's market cap has surpassed the minimum threshold of $5.7 billion.
According to monitoring by Onchain Lens, two newly created wallets (0x9529...8B28, 0x59Ee...3fa5), potentially linked to Bitmine, withdrew 60,000 ETH, worth $126 million, from Bitgo and Kraken.
SharpLink to be Added to Russell 2000 and Russell 3000 Indices on June 29
Nasdaq-listed Ethereum treasury company SharpLink announced on X that it will be added as a constituent of the Russell 2000 and Russell 3000 indices. This will take effect at the US stock market open on June 29, 2026, coinciding with the Russell indices' semi-annual rebalancing.
Representative Companies with SOL Treasuries
Solana Treasury Company Solmate Announces $11.4 Million Rights Offering
Nasdaq-listed Solana treasury company Solmate Infrastructure announced a registered direct offering of an aggregate of 2,298,000 shares of Class B common stock at a price of $4.97 per share, expecting to raise total gross proceeds of approximately $11.4 million. The transaction is expected to close on or around May 27, 2026, subject to customary closing conditions.
Representative Companies with Altcoin Treasuries
WLFI treasury company AI Financial reported a net loss of $271.5 million for the first quarter of 2026, compared to a loss of $2.4 million in the same period last year. As of March 28, the company had a working capital deficit of approximately $5.5 million, total liabilities of $391,000, and total assets of $322,000, raising substantial doubt about its ability to continue as a going concern within one year.
As a WLFI treasury company, AI Financial held 7.3 billion WLFI tokens as of March 28, valued at $703.4 million. This value has fallen by one-third from over $1 billion at the end of last December, resulting in an unrealized loss of $348.3 million, while the company's cost for acquiring the tokens was nearly $1.46 billion. Additionally, the company borrowed nearly $15 million from WLFI in January. Its stock closed down nearly 6.3% on Tuesday at $0.85.
Nasdaq-listed company SUI Group disclosed its latest operating data. As of May 19, it held 108,793,779 SUI tokens. Based on a unit price of $1.06, the corresponding market cap is approximately $115 million. The staking yield is 1.8%, and the market cap to net asset value ratio stands at 0.91x, representing a valuation decline compared to the previous period.
