Bitcoin treasury firm Strive adds industry veterans to board, launches new $950 million capital initiatives

Strive, which recently closed its merger with Nasdaq-listed Asset Entities, announced its board of directors on Monday, bringing a wealth of crypto industry background to the "first publicly traded asset management Bitcoin treasury company," along with more details regarding its Bitcoin accumulation strategy.

The company raised $750 million in financing, with up to an additional $750 million in financing from warrants over the first 12 months, according to a release. It will start off with initial bitcoin holdings of 69 BTC, worth around $7.9 million in today's prices, that were raised under Section 351 of the Internal Revenue Code, a provision that enables the transfer of property to a corporation in exchange for stock.

As part of its shelf registration, Strive announced a $450 million at-the-market offering and a $500 million stock repurchase program reportedly designed to maintain maximum balance sheet flexibility in increasing "bitcoin per share." The firm qualified as a well-known-seasoned-issuer (WKSI) for its shelf registration, which enables it to omit certain details from its regulatory filings, though Strive noted it maintains "an equity-only capital structure."

Similar to Strategy's (ticker MSTR) offerings, the company plans to leverage its shelf registration to issue a publicly registered perpetual preferred equity security to purchase additional bitcoins in "an accretive manner that the company believes will further amplify the Bitcoin exposure for common equity shareholders."

Many so-called digital asset treasury firms are leveraging shelf registrations that allow them to “put securities on the shelf” and sell them during favorable market conditions without needing to file a new registration statement with the Securities and Exchange Commission each time.

A bitcoin-focused board

As reported last week, the combined company will be renamed Strive, Inc. and continue trading under the ticker ASST. Matt Cole will serve as CEO and chairman of the board. Joining him on the board are three C-suite executives of Strive: Ben Pham, Logan Beirne, and Arshia Sarkhani.

The full board will include corporate treasurer at Strategy Shirish Jajodia, CEO of The Bitcoin Bond Company Pierre Rochard, CIO of Swan Ben Werkman, managing partner of The Bitcoin Opportunity Fund James Lavish, co-founder of the Foundation for Research on Equal Opportunity Avik Roy, co-founder of EV3 Ventures Mahesh Ramakrishnan, and professor of corporate law at Yale Jonathan Macey. Jeff Walton, vice president of Bitcoin Strategy, will also join as a board observer.

"A mission aligned board is essential for a Bitcoin treasury company to achieve its goals," said Cole. "We intentionally put together this team to enable Strive to lead with an unwavering focus on Bitcoin accumulation, strategic decision making, and fiduciary duty in service of our mission to increase Bitcoin per share and outperform Bitcoin over the long run."

Strive Asset Management, a subsidiary of the combined firm and an SEC-registered investment advisor, was co-founded by biotech billionaire and former presidential candidate Vivek Ramaswamy, who is expected to run for governor of Ohio in 2026. In May, the company reportedly explored the acquisition of distressed Bitcoin claims, including 75,000 BTC from the Mt. Gox estate.