Dominari Holdings, a publicly traded investment firm, has entered the world of Bitcoin by adopting a bitcoin treasury strategy.
The company has invested $2 million in BlackRock’s iShares Bitcoin Trust ETF (IBIT), instead of holding excess cash reserves. This puts Dominari in the company of other big players who have added bitcoin to their financial strategy.
Unlike companies that buy bitcoin and manage it themselves, Dominari is getting exposure through a regulated ETF. This makes compliance and accounting easier.
“As we continue to expand our capacity to provide comprehensive investment banking services, we remain committed to our broader strategy of transitioning into a dynamic holding company,” said CEO Anthony Hayes.
The company’s bitcoin strategy was announced along with its Q4 earnings. The company is expecting to generate around $19 million in 2024, a 900% increase from last year, signaling big growth and expansion plans.
The news of Dominari’s bitcoin investment has gotten extra attention because of its connection to the Trump family.
Eric Trump and Donald Trump Jr. recently joined the company’s advisory board. Their involvement has people speculating about the company’s interest in digital assets.
Eric Trump has been involved in digital asset initiatives, including his role at Metaplanet, the Japanese company that plans to hold 10,000 BTC by the end of 2025.
World Liberty Financial (WLFI), a Trump-family-backed company, has been making headlines for its foray into digital assets, recently launching its own stablecoin.
For companies like Dominari, investing in a bitcoin ETF instead of buying bitcoin directly has its advantages.
ETFs give you exposure to bitcoin’s upside without the hassle of securing and storing the digital asset itself. This is what’s becoming popular among companies that want to add bitcoin to their financial strategy without the risks of direct ownership.
Related: Bitcoin ETFs Provide Convenient Price Exposure, But At What Cost?
As of now, MicroStrategy is the largest corporate holder of bitcoin after years of investing in the asset. Others like Semler Scientific and KULR Technology Group are following. KULR just added 668.3 BTC to its holdings after buying $5 million worth at $88,824 per BTC.
Dominari Holdings is expanding its operations in several areas. One of those areas is American Data Centers Inc. (ADC), an energy-efficient data centers company Dominari co-founded.
Eric Trump and industry professionals are among its partners, with the holding company owning a 32% stake in ADC. The company’s subsidiary, Dominari Securities, recently got the green light to expand its brokerage operations.
That expansion reflects Dominari’s goal of growing its financial services business, and exploring new investment opportunities.
Dominari’s stock price took a hit after the company announced its bitcoin strategy.
Shares dropped 8.2%, closing at $4.80, with its Market capitalization at around $70.4 million. Bitcoin investments can be pretty volatile. Investors are often optimistic about long-term gains, but concerned about short-term stock dilution.
Dominari plans to keep increasing its bitcoin holdings as its cash reserves grow. That initial $2 million investment may seem small compared to other corporate bitcoin strategies, but it’s actually a significant chunk—about 10%—of the company’s annual profits.
