Crypto Treasury Firms Could Become Blockchain Powerhouses, Analyst Says – 28/9/2025
Crypto treasury firms that hold significant token reserves could evolve from speculative vehicles into long-term economic engines for blockchain ecosystems, according to Ryan Watkins, co-founder of Syncracy Capital.
Digital asset treasury (DAT) firms are publicly traded companies that raise capital to acquire and manage crypto on their balance sheets. In a Sept. 23 blog post and X thread, Watkins highlighted that DATs already control roughly $105 billion in assets across Bitcoin, Ether, and other major tokens—a scale often underestimated by the market.
Beyond Short-Term Speculation
Watkins argues that much attention has focused on short-term trading dynamics like premiums to net asset value and fundraising announcements, overlooking DATs’ potential to actively influence governance and operations within blockchain networks.
“We see select DATs evolving into for-profit, publicly traded counterparts to crypto foundations, with mandates to deploy capital, operate businesses, and participate in governance,” he wrote.
Some DATs already control meaningful slices of token supply, enabling their treasuries to act as policy and product levers. On Solana, for example, staking more SOL can improve transaction efficiency, while on Hyperliquid, staking HYPE can reduce user fees or increase take rates without raising costs. Access to large, permanent pools of assets allows firms to bootstrap and scale effectively.
Programmable Money and Productive Balance Sheets
Unlike bitcoin-only strategies, tokens on smart contract platforms—ETH, SOL, HYPE—are programmable. DATs can stake for fees, supply liquidity, lend, participate in governance, or acquire ecosystem infrastructure such as validators, RPC nodes, or indexers, transforming treasuries into productive, yield-generating balance sheets.
Watkins likens successful DATs to a hybrid of closed-end funds, REITs, and banks, with a compounding philosophy akin to Berkshire Hathaway. Returns accrue in crypto per share rather than via management fees, positioning DATs as direct plays on the networks themselves. Flexible instruments like equity, convertibles, and preferreds provide capital to expand balance sheets, while on-chain yields help sustain growth.
Risks and Survivors
Watkins cautions that not all DATs will succeed. First-generation firms heavy on financial engineering but light on operational substance may falter. Intense competition and premium pressures could lead to consolidation or risky balance-sheet maneuvers.
The winners will combine disciplined capital allocation with strong operational execution, reinvesting cash flows into token accumulation, product development, and ecosystem expansion. “Over time, the best-managed DATs could become the Berkshire Hathaways of their blockchains,” Watkins concludes.
