Forward Industries, a public company that has centered its treasury around Solana (SOL), is using a crypto-collateralized loan to finance a share repurchase, illustrating how digital assets are being integrated into traditional corporate finance.
The company said it will repurchase 6,164,324 shares of common stock from an unnamed institutional investor for about $27.4 million, reducing its total shares outstanding to 76,977,809. Forward did not disclose the seller, and Cointelegraph’s request for the seller’s identity was not answered before publication.
Public filings and third-party data suggest only a handful of institutional holders could supply that volume. Fintel.io records show Galaxy Digital LP held roughly 8.68 million shares as of Sept. 18, 2025, and Galaxy Group Investments LLC held about 8.11 million shares as of Feb. 18, 2026 — placing them among the plausible sellers.
To fund the buyback, Forward secured a $40 million loan from Galaxy Digital LLC at a 3.4% interest rate. The loan is collateralized by 7,013,536 SOL held in Forward’s treasury, a position valued at approximately $613 million at current market prices. By using SOL as collateral, Forward gains access to cash without selling its crypto reserves and can continue to earn staking rewards on the underlying tokens.
The repurchase falls under a broader program authorized in November that allows Forward to buy up to $1 billion of its stock on an ongoing basis. The company has said the program is intended to provide financial flexibility amid crypto market volatility.
That volatility has weighed on Solana’s price, which recently slipped below $90, and on Forward’s stock, which is down about 87% from its September peak. Forward began aggressively accumulating SOL last year as crypto treasury strategies grew more popular; it now holds the largest publicly traded SOL treasury. At least 18 other public companies have adopted similar crypto treasury approaches.
By February, firms using crypto treasuries collectively faced more than $1.5 billion in unrealized losses tied to the market downturn. A large portion of those losses is attributed to Forward, which is carrying an unrealized loss in the vicinity of $972 million.
Analysts and industry participants expect consolidation among companies that have adopted crypto treasuries, as falling crypto prices push market valuations below underlying asset holdings and limited operating cash flow strains business operations. Wojciech Kaszycki of crypto infrastructure firm BTCS noted that sector volatility is likely to accelerate consolidation.
This transaction underscores how companies are leveraging crypto holdings as corporate collateral to manage liquidity and pursue capital-return strategies, even as the same crypto exposure drives sizable unrealized losses. Cointelegraph is committed to independent, transparent journalism; readers are encouraged to verify information independently. Read the editorial policy at https://cointelegraph.com/editorial-policy