180 Life Sciences Raises $425M to Enhance Ethereum Treasury Strategy

180 Life Sciences has closed a $425 million private placement to enhance its Ethereum Treasury Strategy. The funds will be used to buy Ethereum and support legacy operations. The company aims to bolster leadership in the cryptocurrency space with key appointments, including McAndrew Rudisill as Chairman. A differentiated yield generation program, managed by Electric Capital, is also in the works.

180 Life Sciences (NASDAQ: ATNF), formerly known as a biotech firm, has successfully closed a $425 million private placement to advance its Ethereum treasury strategy. The private investment in public equity (PIPE) transaction was led by Electric Capital and Harbour Island, with notable participation from prominent crypto investors including Borderless Capital and Polychain Capital [1].

The funds will primarily be used to purchase Ethereum (ETH) and implement a yield generation program managed by Electric Capital. The program aims to outperform traditional ETH staking through a combination of staking, lending, and liquidity provisioning. Additionally, the company announced significant governance updates, including the appointment of McAndrew Rudisill as Board Chairman and new independent directors [1].

The company may further raise up to $150 million through fixed income securities following the PIPE completion. 180 Life Sciences plans to rebrand as ETHZilla Corporation and has secured $425 million in private placement funding specifically to purchase and hold Ethereum (ETH) cryptocurrency while implementing yield generation strategies [2].

Electric Capital, known for its expertise in the Ethereum ecosystem, will serve as the external asset manager implementing these yield strategies. The company's approach appears three-pronged: 1) Accumulate ETH treasury, 2) Generate yield beyond traditional staking through DeFi strategies, and 3) Continue legacy operations in biotech and iGaming. The appointment of experienced builders from major DeFi protocols as advisors suggests a strong focus on leveraging the Ethereum community's expertise [1].

The governance updates reveal substantial leadership changes with new board appointments bringing cryptocurrency and capital markets expertise. This further solidifies the company's pivot toward becoming what they describe as "the preeminent Ethereum treasury corporation."

For investors, this represents an unusual hybrid - a publicly-traded company that functions primarily as an Ethereum investment vehicle with yield-generating capabilities, but that also maintains some traditional business operations. The company is essentially offering public market investors indirect exposure to Ethereum with potential yield enhancement, though execution risks remain significant given the nascent nature of many DeFi yield strategies [1].

The company's strategic pivot towards Ethereum comes at a time when Ethereum's Layer 2 expansions are facing scrutiny due to low daily revenue and high maintenance costs. CurveDAO, for instance, has proposed pausing Layer 2 expansion to focus on Ethereum mainnet and crvUSD development [3].

References:
[1] https://www.stocktitan.net/news/ATNF/180-life-sciences-closes-425-million-private-placement-to-advance-l7muym8fvxq7.html
[2] https://www.investing.com/news/cryptocurrency-news/180-life-sciences-raises-425-million-for-ethereum-treasury-strategy-432SI-4169139
[3] https://en.coinotag.com/curve-proposal-suggests-pausing-layer-2-expansion-to-focus-on-ethereum-mainnet-and-crvusd-development/