SOL continues to outperform as the market prepares for DATs to accumulate billions, but some are concerned that these treasury companies may serve as exit liquidity for vested investors.
With Bitcoin and Ethereum digital asset treasury (DAT) companies emerging nearly every week, Solana is outperforming in anticipation of DATs accumulating its native token.
SOL is up 15% over the last week, while BTC is flat and ETH is up just 6%, driven by speculation and news of multiple DATs emerging, led by notable investors such as Multicoin Capital, Pantera, and Galaxy Digital.
Unlike BTC and ETH, which are trading roughly 10% off their all-time highs, SOL is still 28% off its all-time high of $293 set in January after the token’s massive rally following the TRUMP memecoin release.
While social media sentiment on Solana may have cooled off slightly alongside the memecoin craze, the Solana ecosystem is experiencing rapid growth in DeFi adoption, with the Layer 1’s total value locked (TVL) at all-time highs despite the chain’s largest asset (SOL) being down more than 20% from its previous high.
“The emergence of Solana DATs represents an interesting evolution in corporate treasury strategies, following the MicroStrategy playbook but adapted for the Solana ecosystem,” Marcin Kazmierczak, the co-founder and COO of RedStone, told The Defiant. “DAT structures can serve valid purposes beyond this concern – they provide regulated exposure to digital assets, enable corporate treasury diversification, and can generate additional yield through staking or DeFi strategies.”
Locked SOL Controversy
While SOL holders are enjoying the price rally, some are suggesting that locked Solana investors may be using DATs as a means to circumvent their vesting requirements.
Avi Felman, the former head of digital assets at GoldenTree, suggested on a podcast that the structure offers vested investors the opportunity to submit locked SOL into DAT vehicles at market value price in exchange for liquid shares of the treasury company’s stock. It is worth noting, however, that there is no verifiable evidence of such deals in the public domain at this time, and the method operates in a legal gray area.
“The concern around using DATs as a mechanism to circumvent vesting restrictions deserves careful examination…The key consideration is whether these structures maintain the intended alignment between long-term token holders and the protocol’s development. The challenge for regulators and the market will be distinguishing between legitimate treasury management and potential circumvention of vesting agreements.” Kazmierczak concluded.