Forward Industries, a leading corporate holder of Solana (SOL), has repurchased 6.16 million of its own shares for $27.4 million. The transaction was financed through a $40 million digital asset-backed loan from Galaxy Digital, carrying an average interest rate of 3.4% and a maturity of less than five months. The loan is collateralized by staked SOL from the company's treasury, which reportedly generates an annual yield of approximately 6.2%.
The share repurchase, conducted as a private transaction with an institutional investor, reduces the company's common shares outstanding by approximately 7.4%. This move is part of a previously authorized $1 billion share repurchase program approved by the board in November 2025. The primary objective is to increase the company's "SOL-per-share" metric, a key indicator of value for shareholders, by amplifying token exposure per issued share.
Forward Industries now holds just over 7 million SOL, valued at approximately $616 million at current prices, solidifying its position as the largest known corporate holder of Solana. The second-largest holder, Solana Company, holds about 2.3 million SOL. However, the company's holdings are significantly underwater. It began accumulating SOL in September 2025 at an average price of around $232. With Solana currently trading near $88, the unrealized loss on those positions exceeds 60%, amounting to over $1.1 billion in paper losses according to blockchain analytics firm Artemis.
The company's stock (FWDI) has also suffered, declining 25% year-to-date and is down more than 89% from its peak of $46.00 set in September 2025. Shares finished the day of the announcement down 0.7% at $4.95. In response to the challenging environment, Forward Industries is projecting a 45% reduction in core operating expenses between the first and third fiscal quarters of 2026, driven by cuts in service fees, legal costs, and vendor spending.
Ryan Navi, Chief Investment Officer at Forward Industries, stated the company is "completely focused on driving meaningful SOL-per-share growth in the most efficient and risk-adjusted way possible." He explained the strategy: when the stock trades at a significant discount to its Net Asset Value (NAV), buying back shares is more efficient than buying SOL on the open market, as it effectively acquires more SOL at a discount.
