Forward Industries (NASDAQ: FORD) stunned investors on Monday after announcing a $1.65 billion private placement in public equity (PIPE) to power its Solana treasury strategy. The move, revealed in a press release, marks a dramatic shift for the company, which until now had been focused on designing products for medical and technology industries.
As part of the restructuring, Kyle Samani, co-founder and managing partner at Multicoin Capital, is expected to chair Forward’s board once the PIPE transaction closes. Multicoin, founded in 2017, has been a long-standing investor in the Solana ecosystem, dating back to the blockchain’s seed round in 2018.
Forward also confirmed it will receive strategic backing from institutional crypto heavyweights Galaxy Digital and Jump Crypto, further cementing its position in the digital asset market.
The announcement according to Decrypt sent Forward Industries stock price soaring 92% in pre-market trading, briefly hitting $31.50 before retreating. By the time U.S. markets opened, the stock was trading at $28.61, representing a 75% daily gain. Despite some pullback, FORD remained up nearly 40% at $22.95.
Such a meteoric rise underscores how Wall Street investors are increasingly tying stock valuations to cryptocurrency exposure, particularly in blockchain assets like Solana, Ethereum, and Bitcoin.
If Forward allocates its full PIPE proceeds into Solana, it would place the company among the world’s largest corporate treasury holders of digital assets. For comparison:
- Eight publicly traded companies currently hold more than $1.65 billion in Bitcoin.
- Three companies hold more than $1.65 billion in Ethereum.
Among Solana-focused treasury firms, Forward would take the lead even with a partial allocation. Rivals such as Upexi and DeFi Development Corp. hold approximately 2 million SOL each, worth around $434 million as of Monday.
Forward Industries said Galaxy Digital will provide advisory and risk management services, while also enabling access to crypto trading, lending, and staking infrastructure. Galaxy itself has been ramping up exposure to Solana, most recently swapping $100 million in Ethereum for SOL in April.
Meanwhile, Jump Crypto continues development of its Firedancer validator client for Solana, designed to improve network performance. The prototype software was released last year and is seen as a crucial advancement for Solana’s scalability.
At the time of Forward’s announcement, Solana was trading at $214, up 5.2% in 24 hours, according to CoinGecko. Other altcoins mirrored the rally, with XRP rising to $3 in the same period.
Forward now joins a growing list of Solana treasury firms, including SOL Strategies, Sharps Technology, Upexi, and DeFi Development Corp. Like Upexi, Forward is leveraging PIPE financing to reinvent its business model—though history shows volatility remains a risk, as Upexi’s share price collapsed 60% after a PIPE investor selloff earlier this year.
Forward Industries’ bold pivot reflects a growing trend of traditional companies transforming into crypto treasury vehicles.
If successful, the move could cement FORD as a leading institutional player in Solana’s blockchain ecosystem, while offering investors a new way to gain indirect exposure to one of the fastest-growing cryptocurrencies.
Read More: Solana and XRP Skyrocket as Global Crypto Market Cap Surpasses $4 Trillion
