Crypto Startups Double Down on Risky In-Kind DAT Model as Altcoin Treasury Reserves Explode
Defying regulatory scrutiny, a wave of crypto ventures is aggressively marketing in-kind Digital Asset Transfers (DATs)—just as altcoin holdings hit record highs.
The yield-chasing gamble: New platforms pitch DATs as 'capital-efficient treasury management' while quietly offloading volatile altcoins onto clients' balance sheets.
Watch the fine print: That 'zero-fee' token swap? It's a liability transfer dressed as innovation—classic Wall Street alchemy with extra blockchain buzzwords.
As one sardonic trader put it: 'Nothing boosts adoption like convincing bagholders they're actually institutional investors.'
Canton Coin uses in-kind DAT model
One recent example for an in-kind treasury building comes from the Canton Coin ecosystem. Canton Coin (CC) only started trading on November 11, but was already included in a DAT company before that.
Tharimmune, Inc. raised $545M based on the sale of CC coins. The raise hinged on an internal valuation of CC at $0.20, a price which was presented to investors as viable.
Unfortunately, right after the start of trading, CC crashed and hovered around $0.11, still in early price discovery.
Tharimmune, Inc. (THAR) also sank to an all-time low, trading at $3.01. The shares were already down by 99% since 2023, and the DAT model was a way for the company to pivot. This time, not even a DAT announcement could spark a stock rally.
An in-kind treasury essentially offloads risk to eventual stock buyers, who later lose both on their stock and token valuations. Moreover, holding tokens in a treasury does not prevent them from being sold by other early buyers or insiders.
As Cryptopolitan reported earlier, there is more skepticism about DAT companies after a few months of peak enthusiasm.
In-kind treasuries recognized as a risky model
Other examples of in-kind DAT raises include Flora Growth Corp., which reported a $401M raise for 0G tokens. The raise was partially funded by fresh capital, but the bulk of the sale was in-kind deposits of 0G tokens, internally priced at $3.
Soon after the launch, 0G crashed, trading at $1.24 as of November 13. Flora Growth Corp. shares also lost value, with FLGC trading at an all-time low of around $7.80.
‘An 80% in-kind DAT is effectively a thin equity wrapper around one single volatile token,’ said Bloomberg’s Akshat Vaidya, who has overseen investments in crypto treasuries as co-founder and managing partner of Arthur Hayes’ family office Maelstrom.
‘If the token drops 50%, the share price falls 80%-100% because the premium evaporates at the same time that forced sellers hit the bid.’
A DAT also targets investors who are unaware of the long history of failed crypto tokens, essentially bringing liquidity to untested new assets.
Some BTC treasury companies have also received in-kind deposits from long-term whale holders. However, the liquidity of BTC and the price expansion over the years have mitigated the risk.
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