Peter Thiel exits ETHZilla after selling his entire stake as the Ethereum treasury company changes its strategy and launches its Eurus Aero aviation token. The sale comes on the heels of the company’s recent drop in stock price and strategic pivot to tokenized aviation assets.
In a latest filing to the US Securities and Exchange Commission, it is confirmed that Peter Thiel’s Founder Fund sold its entire 7.5% stake in the company as of last August.
Peter Thiel’s venture capital entity carried out the sale process. The value of shares held by the Founder Fund was zero by the end of last year.
ETHZilla Faces Pressure After Aviation Asset Debut
The disclosure comes after the firm’s 3% decrease in its stock price due to the initiation of the Eurus Aero Token I. According to Yahoo Finance data, the firm’s shares are priced at $3.40, a decrease of 3.13%. The decrease occurred after the firm made a shift in its strategic focus.
The ETHZilla began as 180 Life Sciences before shifting focus to become the digital asset treasury model. The company accumulated over 100,000 units of the cryptocurrency as it became the corporate owner of Ethereum.
As the price of the cryptocurrency plummeted due to the recent crash, the company began selling off some of the currency it held. The company sold 24,000 units of the cryptocurrency last month as it settled outstanding debt obligations.
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According to CoinGecko data, the company currently holds 69,802 ETH. The number shows a sharp decline from previous numbers. The company has not announced any new purchases of large amounts of ETH.
Eurus Aero Token Marks Move Into Aviation Assets
As a result of the sell-off, ETHZilla launched its first tokenized aviation product last week. The company launched Eurus Aero Token I. The new token will give investors exposure to leased aircraft engines. The new token shows a move away from the company’s focus on Ethereum.
Chairman and CEO McAndrew Rudisill states that a major U.S. airline leases engines to support the new asset. The CEO further said that it is a use case for applying blockchain infrastructure to aviation assets that have contracted cash flows.
As a result of the announcement regarding the new token, the company’s shares fell. The fall came as a result of investor scrutiny of the new direction.
The sale of assets by Thiel occurred around the same time as ETHZilla’s sale of assets. The filing does not give any reason for the sale. The filing confirms that Founder Fund does not have any interest in the company.
Other companies continue to accumulate Ether. BitMine Immersion Technologies announced a new purchase of 40,613 ETH on Feb. 9. The company’s new total is more than 4.325 million ETH.
ETHZilla has also diversified its business by launching ETHZilla Aerospace, which offers access to leased jet engines. The exit of Thiel is an indication of the rising volatility of Ether-heavy treasury strategies in the market that is still adjusting to last year’s peak.
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