TL;DR:
- Polychain Capital leads a $110 million investment to develop Berachain’s treasury, with participation from Kraken and Blockchain.com.
- The project introduces the concept of “Proof of Liquidity,” which rewards those who contribute real value within the ecosystem.
- The initiative reinforces the influx of institutional capital into layer one projects, but leaves open the question of whether it will be able to maintain its decentralized essence.
An unexpected twist has shaken the crypto ecosystem: Polychain Capital is leading a $110 million investment to boost the treasury of Berachain’s BERA blockchain, with Kraken and Blockchain.com also among the participants, in what is described as a significant step toward the institutionalization of the network’s native token. The move sends a clear message: layer one protocols are seeking substantial financial backing and greater legitimacy in public markets.
A strategic boost for Berachain’s infrastructure
According to the press release, the investment is being made through a private placement of shares in Greenlane Holdings, Inc. (Nasdaq GNLN) that will serve to establish the “BeraStrategy,” focused on making BERA the company’s primary treasury asset. The transaction consists of approximately $50 million in cash or cash equivalents and approximately $60 million in BERA tokens. Firms such as North Rock Digital, CitizenX, and dao5 are also participating, adding a mix of traditional and crypto-native capital to the effort.
The BERA token functions as the fee token for the Berachain ecosystem, a layer-one blockchain powered by a mechanism called “Proof of Liquidity,” designed to reward those who generate on-chain value through companies deployed on the network. According to Ben Isenberg, who will be the initiative’s new Chief Investment Officer, the idea is for BERA to capture real revenue from companies operating on the platform, unlike many traditional staking models.
This type of investment stands out at a time when institutional investors are expressing greater interest in structured crypto assets backed by tangible businesses. The partnership between Polychain, Kraken, and Blockchain.com sends a signal that the crypto market continues to seek more robust reserve and treasury management schemes. However, the success of this strategy will depend on execution: will BeraStrategy be able to scale without compromising the decentralization that defines the crypto ecosystem? This new phase raises questions about the extent to which traditional structures and crypto dynamics can converge without tension.
