Eightco raises $120 million…Tom Lee joins the board

Eightco Holdings, a Nasdaq-listed U.S. company that stockpiles cryptocurrencies such as Ethereum (ETH), has secured a new $125 million investment.

Eightco said on the 12th (local time) that it has raised $125 million. The company is a digital asset treasury (DAT) firm that holds Ethereum and Worldcoin (WLD).

Specifically, Bitmine, the world’s largest Ethereum (ETH) treasury holder, will invest $75 million. In addition, ARK Invest, led by Cathie Wood—known as the “Queen of the Bull Market”—has committed to invest $25 million.

Payward, the parent company of U.S. crypto exchange Kraken, will also invest $25 million. Eightco said, “This investment is expected to be used to expand investments in technology areas leading next-generation artificial intelligence (AI) and blockchain infrastructure.”

Eightco also announced the same day that it has made a strategic $50 million investment in OpenAI, the developer of ChatGPT. Eightco said it will also invest $25 million in Beast Industries, the content company of YouTuber MrBeast.

Eightco appointed Tom Lee, chairman of Bitmine, as a new director on its board. Brett Winton, ARK Invest’s chief futurist, will serve as an adviser to the board.

Chairman Tom Lee said, “Eightco sits at the center of the most important demand and development drivers in the future of AI,” adding, “There is tremendous synergy in the connectivity among Worldcoin, OpenAI and MrBeast.”

Meanwhile, Eightco is reported to hold about 11,000 Ethereum and about 277 million Worldcoin.