On September 2, 2025, ETHZilla Corporation, a Nasdaq-listed company backed by prominent investors including Peter Thiel, announced a $100 million deployment of its Ethereum reserves into EtherFi, a liquid restaking protocol.
The decision marks ETHZilla’s first direct integration with DeFi infrastructure. The firm seeks to generate higher yields on its holdings while strengthening Ethereum’s network security.
Executive Chairman McAndrew Rudisill described the shift as a “strategic evolution” in treasury management. “By deploying $100 million into liquid restaking, we’re reinforcing Ethereum’s security while unlocking incremental yield opportunities to enhance returns on our treasury holdings.
Partnering with EtherFi marks a pivotal step in our engagement with DeFi,” Rudisill said in the release.
The allocation represents a portion of ETHZilla’s 102,246 ETH reserves, valued at approximately $456 million as of August 31. In addition to its crypto holdings, the company maintains $221 million in cash equivalents and has more than 166 million shares outstanding.
According to data from the company’s capital summaries, ETHZilla aggressively expanded its Ethereum position through August, acquiring over 20,000 ETH at an average purchase price of $3,949.
EtherFi, the protocol selected for the investment, offers enhanced yield through restaking, a process that allows staked ETH to be rehypothecated into additional security layers and services beyond Ethereum’s core validation.
Mike Silagadze, founder and CEO of EtherFi, called ETHZilla’s entry a watershed moment.
“Their commitment highlights the growing institutional confidence in decentralized protocols and showcases a unique method of bridging traditional finance with the Ethereum ecosystem,” Silagadze said.
The move follows ETHZilla’s rebranding from 180 Life Sciences Corp. in late July, when the company pivoted to digital assets and adopted Ethereum as its central treasury reserve.
Backed by more than 60 institutional and crypto-native investors, the firm announced plans to raise $425 million through a private investment in public equity (PIPE) deal, supplemented by $150 million in potential debt securities.
Proceeds from the financing have been earmarked for ETH acquisitions, treasury operations, and transaction costs. ETHZilla’s treasury strategy is managed in partnership with Electric Capital, which is overseeing an on-chain yield program intended to outperform standard ETH staking.
The company has stated that its broader plan involves a mix of lending, liquidity provisioning, and structured agreements, designed to balance yield optimization with risk controls.
