Solana DAT Companies Now a New Trend in Crypto Market: Kristin Smith

Solana is becoming the center of attention in the cryptocurrency market as more companies adopt it as part of their financial reserves. Kristin Smith, the President of the Solana Institute, said a new trend known as Digital Asset Treasury (DAT) is helping push crypto into wider use.

What Digital Asset Treasury Means

Digital Asset Treasury companies are businesses that go beyond holding tokens. Instead, they use digital assets as part of their balance sheets and put them to work. This can mean staking tokens, running validators, or providing liquidity. By doing this, companies treat crypto as an active part of their strategy instead of just a passive investment.

According to Smith, Solana is seeing strong growth in this area. In recent weeks, several DAT companies have chosen Solana as their core reserve. 

Upexi has moved into Solana, while DeFi Dev Corp has also joined the trend. Another major step came from Nasdaq-listed SOL Strategies, which now works as a link between traditional finance and Solana by offering institutional-grade validators.

The most striking example so far is Forward Industries (FORD). The company made headlines by becoming the first billion-dollar public firm to hold Solana as its treasury reserve. FORD purchased 6.82 million SOL, which represents 1.26% of all Solana tokens in circulation. This move instantly made FORD the largest Solana treasury.

In a related news, Forward Industries filed with the U.S. SEC to launch a $4 billion at-the-market equity offering, the company said in a statement.

Institutional Solana Moves Add Weight

The trend is not limited to smaller players. Large firms and funds are also backing Solana treasuries. 

Helius, listed on Nasdaq, announced a partnership with Pantera Capital and Summer Capital to launch a Solana treasury company. The group revealed more than $500 million in funding for this project. This step shows that established financial institutions are now looking at Solana as a serious reserve asset.

Smith believes this is just the beginning. She pointed out that new treasury models are forming to channel more capital into Solana. By using digital assets in an active way, companies may create more growth than the old method of simply holding tokens without action.

A Growing Pathway for Adoption

The rise of Solana DAT companies reflects the growing acceptance of crypto in both business and investment circles. Everyday investors now have more ways to gain access to Solana through these treasury structures.

For Solana, the increase in treasury use shows its growing role in the wider financial market. As more DAT companies launch, the network may see deeper support and stronger adoption in the months ahead.