SharpLink shares rise 10% as Ethereum treasury firm authorizes $1.5 billion stock buyback

SharpLink Gaming (ticker SBET) said Friday its board approved a stock repurchase program of up to $1.5 billion, positioning the Ethereum-focused treasury company to buy back shares when its stock trades at or below the net asset value of its crypto holdings.

Co-CEO Joseph Chalom, formerly of BlackRock, said the authorization is part of a “disciplined capital markets strategy,” noting that issuing new equity while the share price lags NAV would dilute its "ether per share" metric, whereas buybacks could be accretive in those conditions.

NAV represents SharpLink’s “per-share ETH math,” calculated by taking the fair market value of the company’s ether holdings, plus cash and other assets, minus liabilities and debt, and dividing by shares outstanding. Because SharpLink is an ETH-denominated treasury play, its NAV moves with the second largest cryptocurrency's price and changes as the company adds or sells tokens.

SBET shares surged over 10% after the buyback initiative was announced, Yahoo Finance data shows. ETH was up 7% and trading above $4,600, according to The Block's price page.

The company said purchases may occur via open-market buys, private transactions, or other methods permitted by law, with timing and size dependent on market factors. According to a statement, the program carries no obligation and can be suspended or ended at any time.

SharpLink, which trades on Nasdaq at a $3.3 billion market cap, has cast itself as one of the largest corporate holders of ether and a vocal advocate of Ethereum adoption. The firm holds roughly 740,760 ETH worth an estimated $3.4 billion, pegging SharpLink’s valuation at about a 1.06× NAV.

Approval for the stock buyback plan comes amid a stretch of heavier capital markets activity for ETH treasury firms. The Block previously reported that Ethereum treasury companies hold a total $17 billion worth of ETH.

BitMine Immersion (ticker BMNR), a fellow Ethereum-focused digital asset treasury firm, has increased its ETH holdings to some 1.5 million ether, worth about $6.6 billion, according to its latest disclosure. Led by crypto proponent Tom Lee, BMNR claims to be the second-largest digital asset treasury (DAT) after Strategy.