Tech billionaire Peter Thiel has taken a 7.5% stake in ETHZilla, marking his second investment in an Ethereum treasury firm in recent weeks.
Thiel — co-founder of PayPal and Palantir — invested in ETHZilla, a company that recently rebranded from 180 Life Sciences after shifting its focus from biotech research to Ethereum treasury management.
An SEC filing revealed that Thiel and affiliated entities purchased the 7.5% stake in the firm, which currently holds 82,186 ETH worth about $349 million, along with $238 million in cash equivalents. ETHZilla intends to hold its Ethereum long-term and stake it through Electric Capital’s proprietary network strategies to generate returns for shareholders.
The announcement sent ETHZilla’s stock soaring nearly 207%, closing at $10.24 on Tuesday compared to Monday’s $3.34, according to Yahoo! Finance.
Thiel Strengthens Ethereum Bets with Investments in BitMine and ETHZilla
Thiel’s investment in ETHZilla represents his second significant crypto-focused move in recent weeks. In mid-July, he acquired a 9.1% stake in BitMine Immersion Technologies, a company that originally specialized in Bitcoin mining but has since shifted its focus to creating an Ethereum-centric treasury.
Under the leadership of Fundstrat founder Tom Lee, BitMine more than doubled its ETH holdings following a $250 million private placement just days before Thiel’s investment.
