Digital asset treasury corporations are unlikely to take care of valuations above the worth of the crypto they maintain, in response to Bitwise Chief Funding Officer Matt Hougan, who mentioned Sunday that structural frictions within the DAT mannequin make sustained premiums the exception, not the rule.
Key Takeaways:
- Bitwise CIO Matt Hougan says most digital asset treasuries will commerce at a reduction.
- Only some unsure methods, like issuing debt, lending tokens or utilizing choices, can offset this structural stress.
- Hougan warns that bills and operational dangers compound over time, making sustained premiums uncommon even for well-run DATs.
Hougan argued that the majority DATs face unavoidable downward stress from illiquidity, working bills, and execution threat.
These elements, he mentioned, persistently pull a DAT’s market worth beneath the worth of its underlying crypto, whereas solely a small set of unsure levers can push crypto-per-share larger.
“Most will commerce at a reduction, and only some distinctive companies will commerce at a premium,” Hougan mentioned, calling DATs a class with a “excessive hurdle.”
Illiquidity, Bills and Danger Type the Baseline Low cost
Hougan broke the structural low cost into three pillars, starting with illiquidity, which he described as a elementary drag that exists as a result of DAT buyers obtain publicity not directly relatively than holding the property themselves.
“Why pay full worth at the moment for bitcoin you’d obtain in a yr?” he requested, saying that any delay or friction creates an computerized markdown.
He then pointed to bills, noting that working prices and government compensation dilute crypto-per-share over time.
3/ The worth of this method is apparent when you suppose in very quick time frames. As an example: Think about you had a bitcoin DAT that introduced it was shutting down this afternoon and distributing its bitcoin to buyers. It might commerce at precisely on the worth of its bitcoin (an…
— Matt Hougan (@Matt_Hougan) November 23, 2025
Lastly, Hougan emphasised threat, explaining that buyers should worth within the chance {that a} treasury agency “will slip up in a roundabout way,” whether or not by way of poor execution, mismanagement, or surprising losses.
Mixed, he mentioned, these elements create the baseline low cost that DATs should overcome.
Solely a small set of methods can offset that structural drag, Hougan famous. These embody issuing debt, lending tokens, promoting choices, or shopping for property at a reduction — all of which work solely underneath particular situations and infrequently introduce new factors of failure.
“Bills and threat compound over time,” he added, arguing that even well-run DATs face growing problem sustaining efficiency throughout cycles.
ETFs Now Supply the Cleanest Path to Crypto Publicity
Hougan’s feedback come as sentiment shifts towards exchange-traded funds, which many analysts say supply cleaner, less complicated publicity to crypto.
Nate Geraci, co-founder of The ETF Institute, known as spot ETFs “DAT killers” that ended the period when treasury corporations may gain advantage from regulatory loopholes.
Spot crypto ETFs = DAT killers…
Have been saying this for some time.
DATs thrived by way of regulatory arbitrage.
That sport is just about over now. pic.twitter.com/iF7udqSHnZ— Nate Geraci (@NateGeraci) November 23, 2025
Responding to Geraci, Bloomberg ETF analyst Eric Balchunas mentioned ETFs accomplish the identical objective as DATs however “with good monitoring,” permitting them to reflect underlying asset efficiency extra effectively.
As reported, the worldwide crypto sector is bracing for potential turbulence as main index supplier MSCI weighs whether or not to exclude digital asset–heavy corporations from its flagship fairness benchmarks, a transfer analysts warn may drive billions in passive outflows early subsequent yr.
The dialogue, which started quietly in October, has gained urgency after MSCI confirmed it’s consulting the funding neighborhood on whether or not companies holding greater than 50% of their steadiness sheet in Bitcoin or different cryptocurrencies ought to stay eligible for inclusion.
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