Ethereum-Native Treasuries Tipped To Rival Wall Street, But Face Major Risks: Bernstein
A new report by Bernstein analysts identifies Ethereum (CRYPTO: ETH)-native treasury companies—protocols that help DAOs manage, deploy, and grow onchain capital—as one of the most promising and underexplored areas in DeFi.
The report argues that these firms could eventually rival traditional asset managers and financial operating systems in both value and influence.
But the opportunity comes with serious caveats.
Trending: Be part of the breakthrough that could replace plastic as we know it—
While these treasury platforms such as Karpatkey, Llama, and Avantgarde offer more transparency and real-time capital execution than their TradFi counterparts, Bernstein notes they are vulnerable to centralization risks, particularly in governance token distribution and control.
Many treasury DAOs are controlled by a handful of delegates or core contributors, raising concerns over accountability, especially when managing large sums of public capital.
Even more pressing, the legal ambiguity around liability for treasury decisions is a key barrier to institutional adoption.
In many cases, it is unclear who within a DAO structure would be held responsible for asset mismanagement, a challenge that becomes especially urgent as protocols grow and deploy increasingly complex financial strategies.The report highlights that while treasury protocols offer unmatched composability, integrating everything from yield farming and staking to liquidity provisioning and grant funding, they remain difficult to scale in a fully decentralized and compliant manner.
"Ethereum-native treasuries are effectively unregulated asset managers," the analysts write, warning that without a clear legal wrapper, these organizations could be exposed to enforcement action or internal governance breakdowns.
Nonetheless, Bernstein believes the category will mature as DAOs seek professional financial tooling and as the regulatory environment begins to define clearer standards for decentralized entities.
The report draws parallels to early hedge fund growth and suggests that DAO treasuries could eventually represent multi-billion dollar businesses serving as financial backbones for decentralized ecosystems.
As interest in Agentic Finance, DAO tooling, and onchain governance infrastructure accelerates, treasury companies sit at the center of DeFi's next phase, bridging the programmable capital of Web3 with the performance standards of traditional finance.
Read Next:
$100k+ in investable assets? Match with a fiduciary advisor for free to learn how you can maximize your retirement and save on taxes – no cost, no obligation.
If there was a new fund backed by Jeff Bezos offering a 7-9% target yield with monthly dividends would you invest in it?
Image: Shutterstock
This article Ethereum-Native Treasuries Tipped To Rival Wall Street, But Face Major Risks: Bernstein originally appeared on Benzinga.com
© 2025 Benzinga.com. Benzinga does not provide investment advice. All rights reserved.
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Business Insider
an hour ago
- Business Insider
Bitget Lists INFINIT (IN) for Spot Trading
Bitget, the leading cryptocurrency exchange and Web3 company, has announced the listing of INFINIT (IN) in the Innovation and DeFi Zone, adding it for spot trading. Trading for the IN/USDT pair will begin on 7 August 2025, 10:00 (UTC), with withdrawals available from 8 August 2025, 11:00 (UTC). Launched in November 2023, INFINIT is an agentic DeFi protocol that automates complex onchain strategies through AI-powered agents. By combining real-time data, a natural language interface, and non-custodial execution, INFINIT enables users to research, plan, and carry out multi-step DeFi actions like swaps, staking, and yield farming, all in a single transaction. At its core is INFINIT Intelligence, a personalized DeFi assistant that analyzes wallet activity, goals, and risk profiles to generate tailored strategies. These are powered by the INFINIT Agents Swarm, which includes over 20 cross-chain AI agents coordinating actions seamlessly across protocols. The platform also supports a creator economy, allowing DeFi experts and KOLs to publish strategies and earn a share of fees, fostering a transparent, user-driven ecosystem. Bitget continues to expand its offerings, positioning itself as a leading platform for cryptocurrency trading. The exchange has established a reputation for innovative solutions that empower users to explore crypto within a secure CeDeFi ecosystem. With an extensive selection of over 800 cryptocurrency pairs and a commitment to broadening its offerings to more than 900 trading pairs, Bitget connects users to various ecosystems, including Bitcoin, Ethereum, Solana, Base, and TON. The addition of INFINIT into Bitget's portfolio marks a significant step toward expanding its ecosystem by embracing AI-driven DeFi automation, empowering users with smarter, non-custodial tools to execute complex strategies seamlessly across protocols. For more details on INFINIT, visit here. About Bitget Established in 2018, Bitget is the world's leading cryptocurrency exchange and Web3 company. Serving over 120 million users in 150+ countries and regions, the Bitget exchange is committed to helping users trade smarter with its pioneering copy trading feature and other trading solutions, while offering real-time access to Bitcoin price, Ethereum price, and other cryptocurrency prices. Bitget Wallet is a leading non-custodial crypto wallet supporting 130+ blockchains and millions of tokens. It offers multi-chain trading, staking, payments, and direct access to 20,000+ DApps, with advanced swaps and market insights built into a single platform. Bitget is driving crypto adoption through strategic partnerships, such as its role as the Official Crypto Partner of the World's Top Football League, LALIGA, in EASTERN, SEA and LATAM markets. Aligned with its global impact strategy, Bitget has joined hands with UNICEF to support blockchain education for 1.1 million people by 2027. In the world of motorsports, Bitget is the exclusive cryptocurrency exchange partner of MotoGP, one of the world's most thrilling championships. For more information, visit: Website | Twitter | Telegram | LinkedIn | Discord | Bitget Wallet Risk Warning: Digital asset prices are subject to fluctuation and may experience significant volatility. Investors are advised to only allocate funds they can afford to lose. The value of any investment may be impacted, and there is a possibility that financial objectives may not be met, nor the principal investment recovered. Independent financial advice should always be sought, and personal financial experience and standing carefully considered. Past performance is not a reliable indicator of future results. Bitget accepts no liability for any potential losses incurred. Nothing contained herein should be construed as financial advice. For further information, please refer to our Terms of Use.
Business Insider
2 hours ago
- Business Insider
Little Pepe's Meme Coin Presale Reaches $16,475,000 With Stage 9 Now Sold Out
Little Pepe has officially crossed a major milestone, with Stage 9 of its presale selling out after raising $16,475,000 in total. The Ethereum-based meme coin has recorded widespread online engagement as it proceeds through the final phases of its presale. To date, 11.25 billion $LILPEPE tokens have been allocated, with participation continuing across multiple channels. According to the Little Pepe team, the level of participation in its presale reflects a broader shift within the cryptocurrency sector, where culturally driven, community-led tokens are being developed in parallel with technical frameworks designed for long-term utility. The team views this combination of cultural relevance and blockchain infrastructure as a key factor in the evolving landscape of meme coin projects. Little Pepe is displaying the identical early symptoms of success that surrounded meme coin giants in their early days—but with a clearer roadmap and far greater engaged surroundings. At a glance, Little Pepe fits the meme coin mold—funny frog memes, viral social posts, and a low entry price. But dig a little deeper, and the challenge begins to reveal a few serious fundamentals. Built on Ethereum, Little Pepe benefits from robust security, strong developer support, and seamless integration with existing DeFi tools. This makes it more than just a speculative gamble—it's a meme coin with real infrastructure behind it. What's more, the Little Pepe team has continuously added to their roadmap goals, achieving presale targets quicker than expected. Their advertising technique has been laser-based, attractive meme groups throughout Telegram and X (previously Twitter), at the same time as concurrently attracting new buyers from DeFi and Ethereum ecosystems. According to the Little Pepe team, each presale stage has sold out more quickly than the last, which they view as a sign of growing momentum around the project. The team notes increased attention from both early participants and new users as the presale moves toward its final stages and potential exchange activity. Community Growth Cited as Key Driver A meme coin is only as strong as its community—and Little Pepe has one of the fastest-growing supporter bases in the space right now. Thousands of followers across social platforms are actively engaging with the brand, sharing memes, participating in AMAs, and even creating fan content. According to the project team, community engagement has played a significant role in the pace at which each presale stage has concluded. The team reports participation from a broad range of online users—including influencers, traders, and NFT collectors—who they believe are drawn to both the cultural appeal of the project and its perceived long-term potential. What Comes Next? With Stage 9 now completed, the presale enters its final phases. The team will set a higher token price for the upcoming stages, as defined in the presale structure. Participation is expected to continue as the project progresses, though no specific exchange listings have been confirmed at this time. While no specific exchange listings have been announced, the team has indicated that discussions are ongoing. Any future listings could improve token accessibility and market visibility, though timelines and platforms have not been confirmed. Broader market conditions, including interest in meme coins, may also influence how such developments unfold. A Meme Coin With 2025 Potential Meme coins continue to represent an active segment of the cryptocurrency market, often characterized by the intersection of thematic branding, tokenomics, and online engagement. The Little Pepe project incorporates several of these elements, including community-focused initiatives and Ethereum-based infrastructure, as part of its broader strategy. As 2025 approaches, the Little Pepe team views the project's $16 million+ presale raise and expanding community engagement as indicators of growing market relevance. They consider these developments signs that the project is gaining momentum within the broader meme coin space, as discussions around its progress continue across online platforms. About Little Pepe Little Pepe is a next-gen Layer 2 blockchain designed to merge meme culture with high-speed, low-cost decentralized infrastructure. Built for scalability, security, and accessibility, Little Pepe supports EVM-compatible applications and is powered by means of the $LILPEPE token. The project's mission is to create a meme coin environment wherein utility meets virality, empowering users through cutting-edge technology and lightning-fast transactions. Contact
CBS News
3 hours ago
- CBS News
Nethermind's Work in Blockchain Infrastructure is Shaping the Future of AI Agents and Digital Identity
This content was provided by Acumen Media for Demerzel. This advertiser content was paid for and created by Acumen. Neither CBS News nor CBS News Brand Studio, the brand marketing arm of CBS News, were involved in the creation of this content. The next phase of enterprise automation is here. AI agents are starting to act on behalf of users and organizations: managing tasks, making decisions and executing transactions. Nethermind, a blockchain research and engineering company, provides the infrastructure layer that makes these interactions verifiable, programmable and secure. Its tools already power Ethereum and its scaling solutions, enabling the deployment of agent-driven systems at scale. In the agentic economy, autonomous agents interact with financial platforms and digital services, transferring value and executing logic without direct human oversight. Blockchain makes this possible by offering a shared execution environment, built-in trust guarantees and interoperability across systems. This enables enterprises to automate operations while introducing entirely new service models. Nethermind is building the systems that allow agents to access tokenized assets, verify credentials, and coordinate across decentralized protocols independently and securely. Nethermind sits at the intersection of blockchain and AI, translating protocol research into production-ready infrastructure. Its Ethereum client secures over 30% of the network and underpins many core applications. One example is AuditAgent, an AI system that analyzes smart contracts and anchors findings on-chain. This blend of automation and transparency is a template for how agents will serve regulated industries. Ethereum is already home to enterprise-grade applications such as BlackRock's BUIDL, Stripe's stablecoin payments and identity ecosystems like WorldID. Nethermind is a core contributor to Ethereum, actively shaping protocol development. It builds infrastructure designed for high performance, modularity and the demands of agent-driven systems. Agentic infrastructure reduces costs by automating workflows and enforcing compliance. But more importantly, it enables differentiated services. As agents become primary participants, enterprises must adapt, offering programmable, context-aware systems that respond to agents acting on users' behalf. Nethermind supports these capabilities with live tooling, including identity-based access controls and zero-knowledge onboarding components. "While less than one percent of financial assets are currently on blockchain, this will multiply dramatically," said Tomasz Stańczak, Founder of Nethermind and Co-Executive Director at the Ethereum Foundation. With deep protocol expertise and a track record in Ethereum infrastructure, Nethermind is helping define the architecture for the agentic economy.
