On May 27th, in the trading hall of Nasdaq, a little-known small stock stirred up huge waves. SharpLink Gaming (SBET), a small gambling company with a market value of only $10 million, announced the purchase of approximately 163,000 ETH through a $425 million private equity investment. As soon as the news broke, SharpLink's stock price rocketed, rising by over 500% at one point.
Buying crypto might be becoming the new wealth code for boosting stock prices of listed companies. The origin of the story is naturally MicroStrategy, the company that first ignited the fire, boldly betting on Bitcoin as early as 2020. Over five years, it transformed from an ordinary tech company to a "Bitcoin investment pioneer". In 2020, MicroStrategy's stock price was just over $10; by 2025, the stock had soared to $370, with a market value exceeding $100 billion.
Buying crypto not only expanded MicroStrategy's balance sheet but also made it the darling of the capital market. In 2025, this trend became increasingly intense. From tech companies to retail giants to small gambling enterprises, listed US companies are using crypto to ignite a new engine of valuation. What exactly is the secret behind growing market value by buying crypto?
... [rest of the text continues in the same manner]· On May 15, Addentax Group Corp (stock code ATXG), a Chinese textile and clothing company, announced plans to purchase 8,000 bitcoins and TRUMP coins through the issuance of common stocks. At the current bitcoin price of $108,000, the purchase cost will exceed $800 million.
In contrast, the company's total market capitalization is only around $4.5 million, meaning the theoretical cost of purchasing coins is over 100 times its market value. Almost simultaneously, another Chinese-listed US stock company, Jiuzi Holdings (stock code JZXN), also joined this bitcoin buying frenzy. The company announced plans to purchase 1,000 bitcoins in the next year, with a cost of over $100 million.
Public information shows that Jiuzi Holdings is a Chinese company focusing on new energy vehicle retail, established in 2019. The company's retail stores are mainly distributed in third and fourth-tier cities in China. The company's total market capitalization on Nasdaq is only around $50 million.
While stock prices are indeed rising, the matching of company market value and bitcoin purchase cost is crucial. For more latecomers, if bitcoin prices drop, their balance sheets will face enormous pressure. The bitcoin buying strategy is not a universal wealth code. Buying bitcoin without fundamental support and with excessive leverage may be an adventure leading to bubble burst.
Another Way of Breaking Out
Despite the risks, the bitcoin buying frenzy may become a new norm. In 2025, global inflation pressure and US dollar depreciation expectations continue, and more companies are beginning to view bitcoin and ethereum as "anti-inflation assets". Japan's Metaplanet has already enhanced its market value through a bitcoin treasury strategy, and more US-listed companies are rapidly following MicroStrategy's path.
In the broader trend, cryptocurrencies are increasingly appearing in global political and economic domains. Is this the "breaking out" that crypto enthusiasts often mention? Observing current trends, cryptocurrencies' mainstream path mainly has two routes: the rise of stablecoins and crypto reserves on corporate balance sheets.
On the surface, stablecoins provide a stable medium for payment, savings, and remittances in the crypto market, reducing volatility and promoting widespread crypto application. However, their essence is an extension of US dollar hegemony. Taking USDC as an example, its issuer Circle has close ties with the US government and holds large amounts of US Treasury bonds as reserve assets, which not only strengthens the US dollar's global reserve currency status but also further penetrates the US financial system's influence into the global crypto market through stablecoin circulation.
The other breakout path is the bitcoin purchasing by listed companies mentioned earlier. These companies attract speculative funds through crypto narratives and drive up stock prices, but except for a few leading companies, for later imitators, how much can their main business fundamentals actually improve remains a mystery.
Whether stablecoins or crypto assets entering corporate balance sheets, crypto assets seem more like a tool to continue or strengthen previous financial structures. Whether it's harvesting or financial innovation depends on which side of the table you're sitting on.
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