Upexi to Establish $100M Solana Reserve

Upexi, a publicly traded consumer goods company, has announced a $100 million raise through a private investment in public equity (PIPE) deal to establish a crypto reserve on the Solana blockchain. The round was led by investment firm GSR, which will also assist Upexi in accumulating and staking SOL tokens.

Following the announcement, Upexi shares (UPXI) on Nasdaq surged by more than 630%, rising from $2.30 to around $16.80. The stock later corrected and, at the time of writing, trades at $9.89. 

Deal Details and Upexi’s Plans

As part of the PIPE transaction, Upexi sold approximately 44 million shares at $2.28 each, raising $100 million. More than 90% of the proceeds will go toward building and managing a Solana-based reserve. The remaining funds will support product expansion and overall business growth. 

Backers included several prominent venture capital firms and family offices, including Delta Blockchain Fund, Delphi Ventures, Hivemind, Borderless, White Star Capital, and others.

This investment highlights the growing demand for efficient, secure access to high-quality crypto assets in public markets,

said Brian Rudick, head of research at GSR, in a statement.

Related: UK FCA Grants Approval to GSR

Previously, Upexi indicated plans to diversify its portfolio by including digital assets alongside traditional holdings. That vision is now being implemented. The SOL acquired for the reserve will not only be held but also delegated to validator nodes, enabling Upexi to earn additional income through staking on Solana. 

In its press release, the company emphasized its focus on Solana’s high throughput and low transaction fees.

Related: ARK Invest Unlocks Solana Staking Through 3iQ’s Canadian ETF

Solana Market and Industry Adoption

Several public and private companies have joined the push to build SOL reserves this year. 

• Commercial property financing company Janover has accumulated more than 163,651 SOL (approximately $21.2 million) and has partnered with staking platform Kraken. 
• Canadian holding company Sol Strategies and its subsidiaries have increased their SOL holdings to 189,968 tokens (nearly $40 million) since the beginning of the year.

GSR and Upexi’s announcement highlights growing interest in using Solana for real-world financial applications, and it’s another signal of how traditional finance and DeFi are starting to intersect,

said Lily Liu, President of the Solana Foundation, in a press release.

Solana currently ranks sixth among cryptocurrencies, with a market capitalization of $72 billion and a price of approximately $139 per token at the time of writing. 

Related: Why is Solana hiring a lot? Foundation Recruiters Share What They See