Crypto Treasury Firms Could Become Blockchain “Berkshire Hathaways,” Analyst Says – 28/9/2025
Crypto treasury firms that hold significant token reserves may 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 of the market focus has been on near-term trading dynamics, such as 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 portions 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. Large, permanent pools of assets help firms 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, turning 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 their networks. Flexible instruments like common equity, convertibles, and preferred shares provide capital to expand balance sheets, while on-chain yields help sustain growth.
Risks and Survivors
Not all DATs will succeed. Early-generation firms heavy on financial engineering but light on operational substance may falter. Competition and pressure on premiums could trigger consolidation or risky balance-sheet maneuvers.
The survivors 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.
