VanEck, a well-established investment firm focusing on digital assets, has issued a cautionary warning about suspicious treasury announcements involving XRP and Solana (SOL) by micro-cap companies. Matthew Sigel, Head of Digital Assets at VanEck, highlighted that small-cap firms, particularly those with market caps under $100 million, are making ambitious claims to raise hundreds of millions of dollars to buy these cryptocurrencies for their corporate treasuries.
Notable examples include Singapore-based Trident Digital, which announced plans to raise $500 million for an XRP treasury despite having a market cap around $16 million, and Classover Holdings, an ed-tech company aiming to raise $500 million for a Solana treasury. Others such as Webus International and DeFi Development Corp. have made similar announcements that appear disproportionate to their financial size and without credible institutional backing.
VanEck warns that these declarations may be part of pump-and-dump schemes where hype is generated to inflate stock or crypto prices artificially. The companies may not have the actual capital or strategic rationale to support these purchases, making the announcements potentially deceptive and risky for investors. The timing of these announcements during periods of heightened crypto market interest further fuels skepticism.
The warning encourages investors to conduct thorough due diligence by verifying funding sources, assessing business relevance to cryptocurrency, and evaluating management credibility before responding to such claims. The firm stresses caution particularly with announcements from unrelated sectors or those lacking major backers, as these could exploit market excitement and cause significant losses for unsuspecting investors.
Overall, the alert serves as a reminder that not all corporate crypto treasury announcements are legitimate and that investors need to be vigilant to avoid speculative traps and possible frauds.