Sharplink Narrows Loss as Staking Revenue Eases
The ETH treasury operator posted a $394.3 million second-quarter net loss.
Sharplink (SBET), an online gaming marketer turned ETH treasury operator, increased second-quarter revenue to $11.5 million from $0.7 million a year earlier after its treasury strategy began contributing staking income.
The quarter extended a shift that began with the strategy’s June 2024 launch. Revenue slipped about 5% from $12.1 million in the first quarter as staking income declined for a second consecutive period, while expenses remained well above year-earlier levels.
The net loss widened from $103.4 million a year earlier, though it narrowed about 42% from $685.6 million in the first quarter. Selling, general and administrative expenses rose to $9.1 million from $2.4 million and declined about 8% sequentially.
Staking generated $11.16 million, accounting for about 97% of quarterly revenue. That contribution eased from approximately $11.5 million in the first quarter and $15.3 million in the fourth quarter, leaving it about 27% below its late-2024 level. Affiliate-marketing revenue fell 34% sequentially to $367,000.
Lower crypto-related charges drove the sequential improvement in the bottom line. The unrealized crypto loss moderated 37% to $321.0 million, while impairment charges declined 60% to $76.1 million. Sharplink identified both LsETH and weETH as impaired during the quarter.
Sharplink continued adding ether even as lower market prices reduced the carrying value of its holdings. ETH holdings increased 1.8% sequentially to approximately 886,881 at June 30 and reached 888,938 by Aug. 3, while the U.S.-GAAP value of crypto assets fell to about $1.4 billion from $1.7 billion at the end of March. Cash more than tripled sequentially to $56.2 million.
The company completed a $75 million registered direct offering and used part of the proceeds to acquire roughly 10,000 ETH and repurchase about 2.1 million shares for approximately $10 million. Cumulative repurchases reached 4.07 million shares at a cost of $41.7 million, and Sharplink joined the Russell 2000 and Russell 3000 indexes during the June reconstitution.
After the quarter ended, Sharplink and Galaxy launched an onchain yield fund with $125 million committed, including $100 million from Sharplink. The launch advanced an initiative that had existed as a nonbinding memorandum in May.