Forward Industries has announced a $1.65 billion private placement in cash and stablecoin commitments, marking a pivotal shift toward a Solana-centric digital asset treasury strategy. The PIPE (private investment in public equity) round is led by Galaxy Digital, Jump Crypto, and Multicoin Capital—three of the most influential players in the crypto space. C/M Capital Partners, LP, one of Forward’s largest existing shareholders, also participated.
This strategic capital infusion positions Forward Industries to become a leading publicly traded institutional participant in the Solana ecosystem. The company plans to actively manage its treasury using Solana-based assets, aiming to generate differentiated on-chain returns and build long-term shareholder value. The move reflects a broader trend of public companies adopting blockchain-native treasury strategies, with Solana’s scalability and developer momentum making it a compelling choice.
Each PIPE sponsor brings distinct capabilities:
1.) Galaxy Digital: As a major Solana validator and institutional digital asset platform, Galaxy will provide infrastructure support across trading, lending, staking, and blockchain services. Galaxy Asset Management will also offer advisory and risk management services to help structure and execute Forward’s treasury strategy.
2.) Jump Crypto: Known for its engineering depth, Jump is contributing through its development of Firedancer—a high-performance validator client designed to enhance Solana’s throughput and resilience. Jump’s involvement ensures Forward gains access to cutting-edge infrastructure and innovation.
3.) Multicoin Capital: A thesis-driven investment firm and early backer of Solana, Multicoin has seeded over 25 projects in the ecosystem. Upon closing of the PIPE, co-founder Kyle Samani is expected to become Chairman of Forward’s Board of Directors, bringing deep domain expertise and strategic vision.
This initiative represents one of the most extensive Solana-focused treasury commitments to date, signaling a broader institutional shift toward decentralized finance. By aligning with Galaxy, Jump, and Multicoin, Forward Industries is not only securing capital but also forging strategic relationships that will guide its evolution in the digital asset space. The company’s goal: to become a foundational player in the Solana ecosystem and redefine what it means to be a publicly traded firm in the blockchain era.
New board members: Chris Ferraro, President and Chief Investment Officer of Galaxy, and Saurabh Sharma, Chief Investment Officer at Jump Crypto are also expected to join as Board observers.
Advisors: The company has selected Cantor Fitzgerald & Co. as the lead placement agent and Galaxy Investment Banking, a division of Galaxy Digital, as co-placement agent and financial advisor. Forward Industries and Galaxy Asset Management, a division of Galaxy Digital, also intend to enter into a services agreement for management support relating to the treasury strategy. Skadden, Arps, Slate, Meagher & Flom is acting as legal advisor to Galaxy. DLA Piper is acting as legal advisor to Cantor Fitzgerald & Co.
KEY QUOTES:
“Solana has emerged as one of the most innovative and widely adopted blockchain ecosystems in the world. Our strategy to build an active Solana treasury program underscores our conviction in the long-term potential of SOL and our commitment to building shareholder value by directly participating in its growth. Working with Galaxy, Jump Crypto, and Multicoin – firms with deep expertise and proven track records of investing and building in the Solana ecosystem – gives us a strong foundation to execute this strategy and position the Company as a key player within the digital assets space.”
Michael Pruitt, Chief Executive Officer of Forward Industries
“I have been one of the earliest and loudest champions of Solana since Multicoin first led the seed round back in 2018. Solana is still widely misunderstood and discounted by market participants, despite the fact that it has been resilient through adversarial cycles and continues to be one of the most performant general-purpose blockchains. I believe this asymmetry creates tremendous opportunity for a Solana treasury strategy. Real economic value is being generated on Solana. An institutional-scale treasury can be deployed in sophisticated ways within the Solana ecosystem to create differentiated value and increase SOL per share at a faster rate than simply being a passive holder. As expected Chairman, I look forward to stewarding the company and helping shape the corporate strategy to take advantage of this significant opportunity.”
Kyle Samani
“Kyle, Chris, and Saurabh are three of the most established names within the broader digital asset ecosystem. We believe that under their guidance, Forward Industries will quickly separate itself as the leading publicly-traded company within the Solana ecosystem. We are proud to support this effort to further Solana’s adoption and reinforce its role in the future of finance.”
Mike Novogratz, Founder and Chief Executive Officer of Galaxy
“Jump Crypto is excited to back Forward Industries as it takes a bold step forward with Solana at the center of its strategy. We believe the opportunity exists to provide investors with access to differentiated on-chain return sources that go far beyond traditional staking, leveraging Solana’s high-performance decentralized finance ecosystem. Jump Crypto has been a key engineering contributor to the Solana ecosystem through critical R&D projects like Firedancer, DoubleZero and others. We hope these efforts will be helpful to Forward Industries in achieving institutional scale and driving shareholder value.”
Saurabh Sharma
