On September 2, 2025, ETHZilla Company, a Nasdaq-listed firm backed by outstanding traders together with Peter Thiel, introduced a $100 million deployment of its Ethereum reserves into EtherFi, a liquid restaking protocol.
The choice marks ETHZilla’s first direct integration with DeFi infrastructure. The agency seeks to generate greater yields on its holdings whereas strengthening Ethereum’s community safety.
ETHZilla Leverages EtherFi to Unlock Yield on ETH Holdings
Government Chairman McAndrew Rudisill described the shift as a “strategic evolution” in treasury administration. “By deploying $100 million into liquid restaking, we’re reinforcing Ethereum’s safety whereas unlocking incremental yield alternatives to boost returns on our treasury holdings.
Partnering with EtherFi marks a pivotal step in our engagement with DeFi,” Rudisill mentioned within the launch.
Breaking ETHZilla information
Immediately, we’re excited to announce that we’ll deploy ~$100 million price of our ETH holdings into the @ether_fi restaking protocol.
This marks our first engagement with DeFi protocols nevertheless it definitely received't be our final! pic.twitter.com/PrVleYWWr3— ETHZilla (@ETHZilla_ETHZ) September 2, 2025
The allocation represents a portion of ETHZilla’s 102,246 ETH reserves, valued at roughly $456 million as of August 31. Along with its crypto holdings, the corporate maintains $221 million in money equivalents and has greater than 166 million shares excellent.
In accordance with knowledge from the corporate’s capital summaries, ETHZilla aggressively expanded its Ethereum place by way of August, buying over 20,000 ETH at a mean buy worth of $3,949.
EtherFi, the protocol chosen for the funding, provides enhanced yield by way of restaking, a course of that permits staked ETH to be rehypothecated into extra safety layers and providers past Ethereum’s core validation.
Mike Silagadze, founder and CEO of EtherFi, referred to as ETHZilla’s entry a watershed second.
“Their dedication highlights the rising institutional confidence in decentralized protocols and showcases a novel technique of bridging conventional finance with the Ethereum ecosystem,” Silagadze mentioned.
The transfer follows ETHZilla’s rebranding from 180 Life Sciences Corp. in late July, when the corporate pivoted to digital belongings and adopted Ethereum as its central treasury reserve.
Backed by greater than 60 institutional and crypto-native traders, the agency introduced plans to lift $425 million by way of a non-public funding in public fairness (PIPE) deal, supplemented by $150 million in potential debt securities.
Proceeds from the financing have been earmarked for ETH acquisitions, treasury operations, and transaction prices. ETHZilla’s treasury technique is managed in partnership with Electrical Capital, which is overseeing an on-chain yield program supposed to outperform customary ETH staking.
The corporate has acknowledged that its broader plan includes a mixture of lending, liquidity provisioning, and structured agreements, designed to steadiness yield optimization with danger controls.
ETHZilla Evolves Into Educator and Investor as Ethereum Restaking Beneficial properties Traction
ETHZilla not too long ago canceled 1.3 million excellent shares held by Elray Sources in a $1 million settlement, streamlining its capital construction because it deepens its concentrate on crypto. The transfer follows its broader push to place itself not solely as an investor but additionally as an educator.
Its “Ethereum College” publishes weekly classes on financial coverage and staking economics, with latest materials emphasizing how Ethereum’s payment burn and issuance mannequin have decreased internet annual issuance for the reason that 2022 Merge to simply 0.139%, displaying its deflationary potential.
Asserting ETHZilla's Ethereum College
Each Friday, ETHZilla will train you one thing that you could be not learn about Ethereum.
Immediately's lesson: Ethereum's financial coverage.
Ethereum doesn't have a provide cap like Bitcoin – as an alternative, it has an issuance cap that ensures long-term… pic.twitter.com/88gYNAizj4— ETHZilla (@ETHZilla_ETHZ) August 29, 2025
In the meantime, liquid restaking continues to develop throughout the ecosystem. Whole worth locked in Ethereum protocols has climbed to $30 billion, pushed by validators shifting away from native staking. EtherFi leads the sector in TVL, forward of Eigenpie by providing customers restaking yields through EigenLayer.
Company demand for Ether stays robust. In accordance with SER knowledge, Tom Lee’s BitMine holds about 1.8 million ETH, whereas Joe Lubin’s SharpLink ranks second with 837,000 ETH. SharpLink added 39,008 ETH between August 25 and 31 at a mean worth of $4,531, elevating its treasury worth to $3.6 billion.
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