Ken Griffin, the billionaire founder and CEO of Citadel, has disclosed a 4.5% stake in DeFi Development Corp. (DFDV), a digital asset treasury company focused on accumulating Solana. According to a Schedule 13G filing with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC), Griffin holds just over 1.3 million shares, representing about 4.5% of DeFi Development’s outstanding common stock. Separately, Citadel Advisors LLC and affiliated entities reported ownership of 800,000 DFDV shares, or roughly 2.7% of the company’s stock.
DeFi Development Corp. has emerged as the second-largest Solana treasury company, with holdings of 2,195,926 SOL as of recent data from CoinGecko. In early September, the company acquired $117 million worth of SOL over an eight-day period, lifting its treasury holdings above $400 million. Although the value has since dipped below $400 million amid market volatility, the company’s cost basis of approximately $236 million means it remains profitable. The only larger Solana treasury is held by Forward Industries, with about 6.82 million SOL.
This disclosure underscores growing Wall Street engagement in digital assets, as highlighted in a recent a16z Crypto report that cited companies like BlackRock, JPMorgan Chase, Fidelity, and Citigroup for expanding activity in the sector. Citadel, which manages an estimated $65 billion in assets, participated in an August 2025 private equity placement, signaling major institutional interest in Solana-based strategies. “Citadel CEMF Investments acquired a portion, marking one of the first major hedge fund entries into a SOL-focused treasury vehicle,” said Ken Griffin in the SEC filing.
However, analysts caution about risks in the digital asset treasury sector. David Duong, head of institutional research at Coinbase, noted that “regulatory shifts, liquidity, and market pressures” could drive consolidation, while Standard Chartered warned of potential valuation crunches as market net asset values decline, specifically citing DeFi Development Corp. among those affected.
BTC
ETH
DOGE