"Frenzied as Ever" — the Dan Ives-Led Worldcoin Treasury Purchase Is Only Latest Example of Market Madness

The 3,000% surge in Eightco Holdings on the purchase of a digital asset that can be acquired independently is just the latest example of what one analyst calls “market madness.”

Eightco stock surged to $45.08, from $1.45 on Friday, after a $250 million investment from a group of investors to purchase the Sam Altman cryptocurrency called Worldcoin .

Dan Ives, the colorful tech analyst at Wedbush Securities, was named chairman of the company. BitMine — chaired by Tom Lee, the Fundstrat strategist — agreed to buy a $20 million stake in Eightco at $1.46 per share.

“The market’s animal spirits are more than alive and well; they are as frenzied as ever,” said Mike O’Rourke, chief market strategist of JonesTrading.

He pointed out the company’s only material assets are the $250 million of sponsor financing, yet the stock ended the day with an $8.5 billion market capitalization. It’s likely, he adds, the company will soon launch at at-the-market offering, to build up its multiple of net asset value, or mNAV.

Eightco wasn’t even the only digital asset treasury conversion on Monday. Forward Industries shares jumped 59% to $25.96 after a $1.65 billion investment to buy Solana.

In both Eightco and Forward Industries’ case, the sponsors now hold some 98% of the companies.

“The public’s willingness to pay a premium – and in some cases wild premiums – to have an equity wrapper around a digital asset they can purchase individually remains amazing,” said O’Rourke. He said it’s an example of “extreme greed.”

It’s a playbook taken from Michael Saylor, at the company previously known as MicroStrategy, and now copied not just in bitcoin but other crypto assets. Ironically, at the original, its multiple of net asset value has shrunk from over 3 to 1.5.

O’Rourke points out MicroStrategy’s strength prior to 2025 was its scarcity value as an investment option. “Now that Digital Asset Treasury conversion deals are announced on a weekly, if not daily, basis, that scarcity value is quickly eroding for every equity in the space,” he adds.