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Yahoo
8 minutes ago
- Yahoo
Prediction: SharpLink's Ethereum Move Is Just the Beginning
Key Points A handful of publicly traded companies, including SharpLink Gaming, have now embraced the Ethereum treasury company model. Just like the Bitcoin treasury company model, it relies on raising money from investors to buy crypto. It remains to be seen if a strategy created for Bitcoin will be just as successful for Ethereum. 10 stocks we like better than Ethereum › Something very interesting is going on with Ethereum (CRYPTO: ETH) right now. Small, relatively unknown companies are starting to add Ether, the native coin of the Ethereum blockchain, to their balance sheets as part of a new strategy designed to lift their stock market valuations. And so far, it's working. Case in point: during the past 30 days, shares of SharpLink Gaming (NASDAQ: SBET) are up a whopping 150% (as of July 18). SharpLink Gaming has attracted so much attention with its new crypto strategy that it's almost certain to attract other companies as well. The Ethereum treasury company model In a very short time, SharpLink Gaming has become the largest corporate holder of Ether coins on the planet. It now holds 280,706 coins, worth about $960 million at recent prices. To put that figure into perspective, that's more Ether than even the nonprofit Ethereum Foundation holds. In early July, the company raised more than $400 million for its Ether war chest. After its latest buy in mid-July, it still has more than $250 million for future purchases, so it's likely that we'll be hearing more from SharpLink Gaming soon. If this strategy sounds familiar, that's because the Ethereum treasury company model is a replica of the Bitcoin (CRYPTO: BTC) treasury company model pioneered by Strategy (NASDAQ: MSTR), the company formerly known as MicroStrategy. The concept is very simple: Instead of using cash from operations to fund crypto purchases, you tap the capital markets for funding. Once you have this funding lined up, you go on a crypto buying spree. All of this works as long as the price of the cryptocurrency continues to go up. We've seen this work with Bitcoin, because the price of Bitcoin -- aside from a few pullbacks here and there -- has mostly gone up during the past 24 months. The same might be said for Ethereum, which is up 7% in 2025 (as of July 18) after registering losses for much of the year. It remains to be seen if Ethereum can deliver the same type of performance as Bitcoin, which is up 30% in the same period. The growth of Ethereum treasury companies For now, only a handful of publicly traded companies have adopted this strategy. Two other notable examples are Bitmine Immersion Technologies (NYSEMKT: BMNR) and Bit Digital (NASDAQ: BTBT). Both announced their pivots to this model in June. Now that the groundwork has been laid, it's easy to see how other companies could be tempted to jump in. The price of Ether is still only $3,600, which makes raising money from investors easier than raising money to buy Bitcoin at about $120,000. The lower barrier to entry is likely to be much more attractive for small-cap companies with relatively limited access to the capital markets. Should you invest in Ethereum treasury companies? Right now, I have mixed feelings about SharpLink Gaming, which is also a marketing partner for sports betting books and online casino operators. Just look at this chart, and you'll see why I think it's a risky gamble: In mid-2025, the company's stock had been flatlining. Nothing it did could get its stock price up. Until, of course, it latched on to the idea of investing in Ethereum. And I'm not very enthusiastic about Bitmine Immersion Technologies, either. Granted, it now has renowned investment strategist Tom Lee of Fundstrat as its chairman. That gives it a lot of power to reach out to investors for more capital. But what in the world is a Bitcoin mining company doing buying Ether? It doesn't make any sense to me. We can ask the same about Bit Digital, which is now winding down its Bitcoin mining operations. How can you be an evangelist for Ethereum when your core DNA is rooted in Bitcoin? That's why I'm starting to appreciate Strategy more and more these days. While Michael Saylor, the founder and executive chairman of the company, can be a bit over the top in his predictions, he's a strong evangelist for Bitcoin. I get the impression that, from the moment he wakes up to the moment he goes to bed, he's thinking about Bitcoin. That's the type of person I want running a crypto treasury company. So before you invest in an Ethereum treasury company, make sure you do your due diligence. Only a small handful of them may ever turn into long-term plays worthy of your investment. Should you invest $1,000 in Ethereum right now? Before you buy stock in Ethereum, consider this: The Motley Fool Stock Advisor analyst team just identified what they believe are the for investors to buy now… and Ethereum wasn't one of them. The 10 stocks that made the cut could produce monster returns in the coming years. Consider when Netflix made this list on December 17, 2004... if you invested $1,000 at the time of our recommendation, you'd have $652,133!* Or when Nvidia made this list on April 15, 2005... if you invested $1,000 at the time of our recommendation, you'd have $1,056,790!* Now, it's worth noting Stock Advisor's total average return is 1,048% — a market-crushing outperformance compared to 180% for the S&P 500. Don't miss out on the latest top 10 list, available when you join Stock Advisor. See the 10 stocks » *Stock Advisor returns as of July 15, 2025 Dominic Basulto has positions in Bitcoin and Ethereum. The Motley Fool has positions in and recommends Bitcoin and Ethereum. The Motley Fool has a disclosure policy. Prediction: SharpLink's Ethereum Move Is Just the Beginning was originally published by The Motley Fool Sign in to access your portfolio
Forbes
11 minutes ago
- Forbes
TSA Warns All Smartphone Users—Do Not Use These Networks
Is public WiFi dangerous? Holiday season is now upon us. And as we head to airports across the U.S. and overseas, the Transportation Security Administration (TSA) has issued new warnings for all smartphone (and PC) users to stay safe and secure at airports while traveling. The first warning plays into the controversial risk of juice jacking. This is where you're tricked into plugging your phone into a public charging socket in a hotel or mall or airport. 'So, when you're at an airport do not plug your phone directly into a USB port. Bring your TSA-compliant power brick or battery pack and plug in there.' TSA's second warning plays into the even more controversial risk of public WiFi. Nothing irritates cybersecurity professionals more than blanket warnings about public WiFi, given that most traffic to and from your smartphone is now encrypted. But TSA has warned smartphone users nonetheless. 'Don't use free public WiFi,' it says as one of its 'two best tips for staying cyber safe at airports while you're traveling.' That means do not connect to free airport networks as most of us do. This is especially true, it adds, 'if you're planning to make any online purchases,' and also warns 'do not ever enter any sensitive info while using unsecured WiFi.' So, is this right? In general, public WiFi is fine — and that includes airport WiFi. As the FTC says 'because of the widespread use of encryption, connecting through a public Wi-Fi network is usually safe.' But be sure to follow those golden rules when connecting: The mobile security specialists at Zimperium have just issued their own public WiFi warning for smartphone users 'especially during travel when vigilance is low.' With free public-WiFi everywhere,' they say, 'attackers know exactly how to strike.' Zimperium says smartphone settings should be changed to 'block connections to public unsecured WiFi,' with 'over 5 Million Public Unsecured Global Wi-Fi networks found since beginning of 2025, with 33% of users connecting to public unsecured networks.' Echoing TSA's warning, the team says 'during travel, these risks multiply.' And it's not just airports. 'Hotels, ride-share hubs, and cafés all offer rich hunting grounds for attackers.' It's worse overseas, but 'major U.S. cities like Los Angeles, New York, Portland, Miami, and Seattle are seeing increased mobile malware activity.'
Yahoo
11 minutes ago
- Yahoo
The CEO caught hugging his HR chief at a Coldplay show has resigned after being placed on leave amid an investigation
Astronomer CEO Andy Byron resigned, the company said Saturday. He and his chief people officer, Kristin Cabot were being investigated by their board after after a video of them snuggled up took the internet by storm. Astronomer, the tech company at the center of a viral internet controversy in which the married boss embraced his chief people officer at a Coldplay concert where it was featured on a jumbotron, said Saturday that CEO Andy Byron has resigned. That came after the company announced launched a formal investigation and said he had been placed on leave. 'Andy Byron has tendered his resignation, and the Board of Directors has accepted,' the company said in a statement. 'The Board will begin a search for our next Chief Executive as Cofounder and Chief Product Officer Pete DeJoy continues to serve as interim CEO.' Astronomer is a private data infrastructure and operations company that achieved unicorn status in 2022 with a $1 billion or more valuation. The once-obscure company recently moved its headquarters to New York City, and secured $93 million in series D funding in a round led by Bain Capital Ventures and Salesforce Ventures. 'Before this week, we were known as a pioneer in the DataOps space, helping data teams power everything from modern analytics to production AI,' Astronomer said Saturday. 'While awareness of our company may have changed overnight, our product and our work for our customers have not. We're continuing to do what we do best: helping our customers with their toughest data and AI problems.' On Friday, the board said it would dig into the conduct of Byron and chief people officer Kristin Cabot and will reveal additional details soon, the company posted in a statement on LinkedIn and X. At the time, the board placed Byron on leave, a spokesperson told Fortune, with DeJoy serving as interim CEO in the meantime. 'Astronomer is committed to the values and culture that have guided us since our founding. Our leaders are expected to set the standard in both conduct and accountability,' the company's announcement read. 'The Board of Directors has initiated a formal investigation into this matter and we will have additional details to share very shortly.' The response was posted to both platforms on Friday. It received more than 700 reactions on LinkedIn almost immediately. Astronomer clarified in its post that an employee speculated to have also been at the Boston Coldplay concert with Byron and Cabot was not at the event. The company similarly refuted any alleged statements circulated online said to have been made by Byron or Astronomer as incorrect. Byron and Cabot's concert hug rose to internet fame and sparked widespread affair allegations on Thursday after a clip, posted on TikTok, showed the CEO holding his subordinate in his arms at the Gillette Stadium show. Byron is seen in the video clutching Cabot from behind as the pair smiles and sways in the crowd. Coldplay frontman Chris Martin can be heard saying 'Oh look at these two,' as they appear on the jumbotron, only for Cabot to quickly cover her face and turn away while Byron ducks to avoid the cameras. Martin responded to their behavior, 'Either they're having an affair or they're very shy' as the crowd cheered. The band played at the Boston venue on Tuesday and Wednesday night. After the video went viral, it was revealed that Byron is legally married to Megan Kerrigan Byron. He and Kerrigan appear to have two sons. As for Cabot, public records suggest she has been married at least once. Her current marital status, however, could not be confirmed. At many public and private companies, relationships between a CEO and another employee are prohibited because they can be viewed as coercive by their very nature. They can also disrupt morale and lead to allegations of unfair treatment. Byron became CEO of Astonomer in 2023, whereas Cabot, according to her now-defunct LinkedIn, joined Astronomer in November 2024. This story was originally featured on Error in retrieving data Sign in to access your portfolio Error in retrieving data Error in retrieving data Error in retrieving data Error in retrieving data
