Shares of companies with crypto reserves collapsed despite the growth of the crypto market
Date: 2025-09-12 Author: Gabriel Deangelo Categories: BUSINESS
The securities of public companies using the strategy of accumulating cryptocurrency are losing value, even against the backdrop of strengthening Bitcoin and other coins. Shares of Strategy (MSTR), the most famous among such players, fell from $457 in July to $328 - the lowest level since spring. Japanese Metaplanet (3350) has lost more than 60% compared to its June maximum.
We are talking about the so-called DAT companies (Digital Asset Treasury), which issue shares or bonds to attract capital and direct it to the purchase of cryptocurrencies. Just a few years ago, more than 60 such companies were not associated with the crypto business at all. Today, their number has increased significantly: according to Bitcoin Treasuries, 189 public organizations already hold bitcoins in reserves, the total volume of which has reached 1,006,592 BTC (about $114 billion). More than 70 companies have focused on Ethereum, seven projects are investing in Solana, and some have begun to form reserves in Hyperliquid, Dogecoin, and World Liberty Financial.
Experts believe that the decline in the quotes of such companies is quite natural. Their value directly depends on fluctuations in the bitcoin exchange rate and often reacts to its fall much more strongly. Securities purchased by private investors are especially sensitive to this. A massive sell-off of shares during a sharp drawdown intensifies the effect of the collapse. Kaiko analyst Adam McCarthy explains: if bitcoin loses 3%, the shares of DAT companies can fall four to five times more. For retail players, this becomes a shock and leads to panic selling.
Those who have recently changed their strategy abruptly have been hit the hardest. Smarter Web Company shares have fallen more than 70% since April, while Alt5 Sigma shares have lost 61% after their previous gains on the back of a deal with World Liberty Financial, linked to the family of US President Donald Trump.
Ethereum market participants have also suffered: BitMine and GameSquare have depreciated by about 67% from their summer highs. It is significant that the capitalization of some DAT companies after the fall in their shares turns out to be lower than the value of the cryptocurrency that they hold on their balance sheets.
Meanwhile, Bitcoin has managed to recoup the September correction and returned above $114,000 for the first time since late August. However, analysts warn that as long as investors continue to perceive DAT companies as direct buyers of cryptocurrency, and not as players speculating on the idea of "crypto reserves", the falls will be repeated.
Ethereum founder Vitalik Buterin has previously noted that excessive use of leverage in such projects could create risks for ETH as well.
