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Shares of Ethereum-focused treasury firm ETHZilla (ETHZ) continued their upward climb on Monday, rising 14% following strong backing from well-known Beyond Meat investor and influencer Dimitri “Capybara Stocks” Semenikhin. The move came after the company confirmed it had sold $40 million worth of Ethereum (ETH) to repurchase its own shares — a decision directly aligned with Semenikhin’s recent public recommendations.
This latest rally marks another chapter in ETHZilla’s growing prominence among digital asset–backed companies and highlights how influential investors are beginning to shape corporate strategies in the blockchain finance space.
Beyond Meat’s Influencer Turns Toward Ethereum
Dimitri Semenikhin, widely recognized for helping fuel Beyond Meat’s recent 1,000% surge, has shifted his focus from traditional equities to blockchain-based firms. Known by his online handle “Capybara Stocks,” Semenikhin announced that he had acquired approximately 2.2% of ETHZilla’s outstanding shares, citing the company’s steep undervaluation relative to its underlying assets.
He argued that ETHZilla’s shares were trading at nearly half of the company’s net asset value, a rare discount for a firm holding hundreds of millions of dollars in liquid Ethereum assets.
“Treasury bets are really measured by the multiplier they have on their net assets,” Semenikhin said in a statement. “ETHZilla’s multiplier was at an all-time low of 50%, and is still well below other digital treasuries.”
Following his statements, ETHZilla’s trading activity increased sharply, mirroring the type of social-driven enthusiasm last seen during the GameStop and AMC rallies of 2021.
ETHZilla’s $40 Million Buyback Strategy
Soon after Semenikhin’s remarks, ETHZilla’s management announced that it had executed a major share buyback, selling $40 million worth of ETH from its treasury to repurchase shares from the open market.
“We are leveraging the strength of our balance sheet, including reducing our ETH holdings, to execute share repurchases,” said ETHZilla’s chairman and CEO McAndrew Rudisill.
This move came only hours after Semenikhin published an open letter urging the company to take immediate action to narrow the gap between its market price and its true asset value.
ETHZilla initially unveiled a $250 million share buyback program in August to increase shareholder value. However, Monday’s decision marked the first large-scale implementation of that plan, signaling a willingness to act decisively on investor input.
ETHZilla’s Position Among Ethereum Treasury Firms
Before its buyback, ETHZilla held 102,916 ETH in reserves, placing it among the top six publicly traded firms with significant Ethereum holdings. The company’s total ETH treasury was valued at around $434 million before Monday’s sale and remains near $400 million afterward.
ETHZilla’s shares rebounded sharply after weeks of trading weakness, climbing from a low of $12.78 to $20.65 by Monday’s close — a gain of over 60%. After-hours trading pushed prices even higher, reaching around $23 per share.
The recent uptick follows a 1-for-10 reverse stock split completed last week, designed to make ETHZilla’s shares more attractive to institutional investors by increasing the stock price and reducing volatility.
Semenikhin’s Push for Change
Semenikhin’s involvement in ETHZilla has stirred comparisons to retail influencers from the meme stock era. However, he insists his approach is more strategic than speculative.
“The company should have been buying back these shares themselves,” he said. “It’s not normal that an external investor could accumulate such a large position at this kind of discount.”
He emphasized that his aim is not short-term hype but long-term value creation through disciplined treasury management. His open letter called for ETHZilla to increase its buybacks when its market price falls below net asset value (NAV), a common strategy among traditional holding companies seeking to close valuation gaps.
Semenikhin’s campaign has already begun to influence ETHZilla’s investor base, as his following on Reddit, X (formerly Twitter), and YouTube continues to grow. Many retail investors now view ETHZilla as a potential “value play” within the broader Ethereum ecosystem — an investment backed by real crypto assets rather than speculation.
A Signal for Ethereum-Linked Companies
ETHZilla’s resurgence also highlights the increasing investor appetite for Ethereum treasury firms — companies that manage significant ETH reserves and operate similarly to publicly traded Bitcoin holding firms such as MicroStrategy.
The firm’s recent activity underscores a trend of active treasury management rather than passive holding, suggesting that crypto-based corporations are beginning to adopt strategies long used by traditional financial institutions.
This shift could attract a new wave of institutional and retail investors who see these firms as safer and more structured ways to gain exposure to digital assets without directly holding cryptocurrencies.
Backed by Prominent Investors
In addition to Semenikhin’s new position, ETHZilla counts billionaire investor Peter Thiel among its key backers. Thiel and his associated entities acquired a 7.5% stake in the firm earlier this year, helping to drive an initial surge in its stock price.
With influential figures like Thiel and Semenikhin on board, ETHZilla finds itself at the intersection of traditional finance and decentralized assets — a space increasingly watched by analysts seeking to measure crypto’s mainstream adoption.
The Road Ahead
As of this week, ETHZilla’s market capitalization remains well below its net asset value, suggesting potential room for further appreciation if buyback activities continue. Analysts say the firm’s ability to balance Ethereum sales with shareholder rewards could serve as a model for other blockchain treasuries in the months ahead.
Semenikhin, for his part, continues to emphasize transparency and disciplined investing. “After the success of my Beyond Meat investment,” he said, “I wanted to show that there are also more risk-averse investments that can deliver strong, asymmetric returns.”
Whether ETHZilla’s rise marks the beginning of a broader shift toward Ethereum-backed equity plays remains to be seen. But one thing is certain — the company’s bold moves have reignited investor interest in the intersection of crypto assets and traditional capital markets.
