Author: Nancy, PANews

SharpLink Gaming, a small U.S. stock company that was previously little-known and whose stock price was on the verge of delisting, has suddenly become the focus of attention in the crypto market.

On May 27, SharpLink announced the completion of approximately US$425 million in private placement financing and will purchase a large amount of ETH as its main treasury reserve asset. This crypto gamble has sparked heated discussions in the community, and many people even called it the "Ethereum version of Strategy."

Betting on ETH as a treasury reserve asset, obtaining 425 million in financing with a market value of 2 million

According to an announcement released by SharpLink, the company has signed a securities purchase agreement to raise approximately US$425 million through a public company private investment (PIPE) pursuant to which the company will issue approximately 69.1 million shares of common stock (or equivalent securities) at a price of US$6.15 per share, of which the subscription price for management team members is US$6.72 per share.

This round of financing is a luxurious one, led by Ethereum infrastructure developer ConsenSys, and participating institutions include ParaFi Capital, Electric Capital, Pantera Capital, Galaxy Digital, Ondo, GSR and Republic Digital. In addition, SharpLink CEO Rob Phythian and CFO Robert DeLucia also participated in the subscription. However, these participating institutions did not publish any related news on Twitter or the official website.

According to the company's announcement, the proceeds from the financing will be mainly used to purchase ETH, which will become SharpLink's main treasury reserve asset in the future. Part of the funds will be used for daily operations and other general corporate purposes.

The transaction is expected to be completed around May 29, 2025. The most iconic step is the addition of Joseph Lubin, co-founder of Ethereum and CEO of ConsenSys, who will serve as chairman of the board of directors of SharpLink and assist the company in developing its core business as a strategic advisor. ConsenSys plays an important role in the Ethereum ecosystem and is the driving force behind core tools such as Infura and MetaMask. Lubin's joining is not only an endorsement of identity, but also a deep strategic binding.

On the day the financing news was announced, SharpLink's stock price soared to $50, a record high since May 2023. SharpLink's current valuation has jumped to $2.5 billion. You know, a week ago, it was just a marginal stock with a daily trading volume of only tens of thousands of dollars and a stock price hovering around a few dollars, with a market value of less than $2 million.

The company was in financial trouble for many years and was once on the verge of delisting.

Behind SharpLink's transformation into the encryption market is a carefully planned and in-depth reconstruction of its business and identity.

SharpLink is an online technology company headquartered in Minneapolis, Minnesota, USA, focusing on providing performance-driven marketing solutions for the sports betting and iGaming (online gambling) industries. The company helps the world's leading sports betting and online casino operators attract, acquire and retain players through its iGaming affiliate marketing network PAS.net . In addition, SharpLink also operates a series of direct-to-player, state-specific affiliate marketing websites designed to direct local sports betting and online casino traffic to its partners.

In the past few years, SharpLink has been facing the dual pressures of declining revenue and deteriorating finances. It was not until last year that it turned its net income from loss to profit. According to the full-year financial data for 2024 released by SharpLink, the annual revenue for that year fell by 26.1% year-on-year, and the annual revenue was only US$3.662 million. Although the tax gains generated by the termination of the business brought about US$10.09 million in net profit, this did not cover up the weakness of its main business. Not only that, as of the end of 2024, SharpLink's cash reserves were approximately US$1.436 million, a decrease of 42.2% from US$2.487 million at the end of 2023. Faced with tight funds, SharpLink raised approximately US$1.83 million through "market issuance" (ATM) in 2024.

In order to stop the bleeding, SharpLink sold its fantasy sports and game development core assets in early 2024, recovered $22.5 million in cash, repaid about $19.4 million in debt, and moved its registered place from Israel to Delaware, paving the way for subsequent compliance and capital operations. Rob Phythian said at the time, "The sale of fantasy sports and SHGN businesses and the repayment of debts are turning points in SharpLink's history. The company has now completed its focus and slimming down, and is able to focus on its main business of affiliate marketing and emerging growth directions."

In addition, in order to increase the trading price per share and avoid forced delisting from Nasdaq, SharpLink also implemented a 1-for-12 reverse stock split in May 2025.

This series of strategic adjustments laid the foundation for SharpLink to transform into an Ethereum reserve company. In February 2025, SharpLink took its first step into the crypto world by acquiring a 10% stake in British Armchair Enterprises Limited (parent company of CryptoCasino.com) for $500,000 in cash, and obtained the right of first refusal to acquire future controlling stakes. CryptoCasino.com is a blockchain-based online gambling platform that supports recharges and bets on more than 20 mainstream cryptocurrencies such as Bitcoin, Ethereum, and Litecoin, provides more than 6,000 gambling games, and the platform has also launched a native token $CASINO. Although this move did not boost the company's stock price at the time, it sent a signal of transformation to the outside world.

However, SharpLink's revenue scale is still small, its main business is still in the early stages of transformation, and its financial structure is still under pressure. Why do heavyweight crypto institutions such as ConsenSys still choose to invest heavily? The reason is that compared with crypto-native companies, building a chain treasury with the help of a Nasdaq-listed company is not only very persuasive in the market, but also can trigger a wider range of capital market linkages, which may change the capital market's imagination of Ethereum. Similar to Strategy's arbitrage model of putting Bitcoin into listed companies and amplifying its value through the capital market, it has obtained a stock price premium far exceeding the currency price itself. This model has been widely recognized by the market and attracted many followers.

Joseph Lubin also said about the investment, “After the transaction is completed, Consensys looks forward to working with SharpLink to explore and develop Ethereum treasury strategies and serve as a strategic advisor on its core business. This is an exciting time for the Ethereum community, and I am very happy to work with Rob and his team to bring the potential of Ethereum to the public capital markets.”

However, it remains to be seen whether the financial leverage effect brought by SharpLink's reliance on ETH reserves can withstand the test of market cycles and replicate the Strategy-style capital miracle.