SharpLink Gaming Boosts Treasury by 120 ETH in Rewards, 19% Value Gain Mastercard Partners Chainlink for On-Chain Crypto Purchases ProCap BTC Buys 3,724 Bitcoin for $387 Million, Aims for $1 Billion Treasury

SharpLink Gaming, a Minneapolis-based gaming-tech company, has significantly bolstered its treasury by acquiring 12,207 ether, valued at $30.7 million, between June 16 and June 20. This purchase was funded by a $27.7 million at-the-market share sale, which involved the issuance of 2.5 million new SBET shares. The company's treasury now holds a total of 188,478 ETH, positioning it as a leading public holder of ETH. Earlier in June, SharpLink raised $450 million from prominent investors such as ConsenSys, Galaxy, and Pantera to accelerate its crypto strategy. This investment also brought Ethereum co-founder and ConsenSys chief Joe Lubin onto SharpLink’s board as chair. The company reports that its ether staking has already earned 120 ETH in rewards, enhancing the value of ether per share by 19%.

Mastercard has formed a strategic partnership with Chainlink to enable crypto purchases directly on-chain for its over three billion cardholders worldwide. This collaboration involves several key players handling the behind-the-scenes processes. Shift4 processes the card payment, while Zerohash converts fiat into crypto and holds custody. The actual crypto trade is executed through decentralized exchanges like XSwap and Uniswap. Chainlink’s Cross-Chain Interoperability Protocol (CCIP) facilitates the seamless transfer of transaction data between Mastercard’s network and various blockchains. This move is part of Mastercard's ongoing efforts to integrate crypto into its payment ecosystem, following a recent partnership with MoonPay to enable stablecoin spending at over 150 million merchants.

ProCap BTC, the crypto investment firm founded by Anthony Pompliano, has made a substantial investment by purchasing 3,724 bitcoin for approximately $387 million. This acquisition comes just one day after the firm announced a $750 million capital raise and a $1 billion SPAC deal. The bitcoin was acquired at a time-weighted average price of $103,785 per coin. This purchase is the first step in ProCap's treasury strategy, which aims to grow to $1 billion once its merger with Columbus Circle Capital Corp. is finalized and the new entity, ProCap Financial, begins trading on Nasdaq. Most of the firm’s recent funds came through a $550 million preferred equity round and $225 million in convertible notes. If the firm were already publicly listed, its bitcoin holdings would rank it among the top 15 holders globally.