SharpLink is executing a complex treasury strategy that moves beyond simple staking. Its capital will flow through Consensys’ Layer 2 to EigenLayer, actively securing new services like verifiable AI and generating yield.
Summary
- SharpLink will deploy $200 million in ETH to Linea via ether.fi and EigenCloud to unlock institutional restaking yields.
- The move supports new services like verifiable AI while maintaining compliance and Anchorage Digital custody.
- The partnership with Consensys aims to build institutional capital markets tools as SharpLink expands its 859,000+ ETH treasury.
According to a press release dated Oct. 28, SharpLink Gaming is set to deploy $200 million worth of Ethereum (ETH) tokens from its corporate treasury onto Linea, the zkEVM scaling network developed by Consensys.
The Minneapolis-based company said it will route its assets through ether.fi and EigenCloud to support staking and restaking activity tied to emerging services such as verifiable AI. Anchorage Digital Bank will custody and manage the capital, which SharpLink plans to deploy gradually over several years to align yield generation with institutional compliance requirements.
“This deployment enables us to access the best of Ethereum’s staking, restaking and DeFi yield, while maintaining the institutional safeguards our stockholders expect. We are proud to be among the early institutional adopters of Linea’s infrastructure, which leads the Ethereum Layer 2 ecosystem in terms of its standards for composability, scalability and security,” SharpLink Co-CEO Joseph Chalom said.
SharpLink tests a new DeFi front
SharpLink noted that the deployment is designed to create a compliant, scalable path for institutional capital to participate in restaking and emerging onchain services. Linea provides a secure execution environment aligned with Ethereum’s settlement guarantees, while EigenLayer introduces a new financial primitive that allows ETH to secure more than just the base chain.
The move carries strategic significance for Consensys, which developed Linea to serve as a programmable home for assets in motion. Joseph Lubin, founder of Consensys, co-founder of Ethereum, and chairman of SharpLink, framed the deployment as a proof point for how institutional ETH can be put to work with stronger productivity.
Lubin argued that financial markets are shifting toward trustless infrastructure, and that ETH must play an active role rather than sit idle in cold storage. He positioned SharpLink’s approach as the type of model others are likely to follow once they seek efficient, secure ways to generate returns onchain without compromising governance or compliance.
The $200 million deployment is the first act in a broader strategic partnership. According to the release, SharpLink and Consensys plan to co-develop “institutional, composable capital markets primitives.” This ambitious goal involves pioneering new models for onchain capital raises, creating programmable liquidity tools, and engineering tokenized equity strategies.
Notably, the deployment coincides with SharpLink’s continued accumulation of Ethereum. The company recently bolstered its position with a purchase of 19,271 ETH, valued at approximately $78.3 million. This acquisition pushes SharpLink’s total Ethereum treasury to over 859,000 ETH, a holdings worth more than $3.6 billion and solidifying its status as one of the world’s most significant corporate holders.