Strive Seals Merger With Asset Entities to Form First Public Bitcoin Treasury Asset Manager

Strive Asset Management, a subsidiary of Strive Enterprises Inc., announced on May 7 a definitive merger agreement with Asset Entities Inc. (Nasdaq: ASST), a move that will create the first publicly traded bitcoin treasury asset management company.

Strive, a subsidiary of the enterprise founded by Vivek Ramaswamy, is forming the first publicly traded bitcoin treasury asset management company.

The company, which recently launched a private wealth management division and manages about $2 billion in assets through its asset management subsidiary, is merging with Asset Entities Inc. (Nasdaq: ASST) to create the first-ever public bitcoin treasury company.

The move will bring together Strive’s institutional investment experience and Asset Entities’ technology in a venture that aims to reshape digital asset strategy in public markets.

The combined company will operate under the Strive brand and remain listed on Nasdaq, where it will become a public bitcoin treasury company. The merger is structured as a reverse takeover, and it will give the combined entity immediate access to an effective shelf registration statement that the firm plans to expand to $1 billion.

This capital-raising mechanism is intended to fund bitcoin accumulation through equity and debt offerings while minimizing dilution to shareholders.

The company is also planning to use opportunistic acquisitions to fund its bitcoin treasury operations.

"We plan to use all available mechanisms to build a bitcoin war chest in a minimally dilutive manner to common shareholders and build a long-term investment approach designed to outperform bitcoin, by using bitcoin itself as the hurdle rate for capital deployment," the company stated.

The company’s strategies include a tax-efficient offering that it described as the “First company to offer an exchange of bitcoin for public company equity in a manner designed to be tax-free to investors.”

"We are excited to announce this definitive merger agreement with Asset Entities," said Matt Cole, CEO of Strive. "This transaction represents a significant milestone in our journey to reshape the landscape of public markets and create a unique investment opportunity for those seeking exposure to bitcoin within a diversified and opportunistic treasury model."

The company added that it is actively seeking to merge with or acquire cash-rich public companies whose equity values are below their net cash positions.

"We believe that this approach could present a multi-billion dollar opportunity to acquire bitcoin in a manner accretive to common equity," the company stated.

The company is also planning to launch a new product that will allow investors to exchange their bitcoin for shares in Strive in a transaction that is designed to be tax-efficient.

"We are offering a limited opportunity for investors to participate in the formation of the first public bitcoin treasury company in the U.S.,” Cole said.

"This offering is structured to allow for a potentially tax-free exchange of bitcoin for shares of Strive, subject to the satisfaction of applicable requirements and individual tax circumstances. We are capping this offering at $1 billion, which we believe is sufficient to build a meaningful bitcoin treasury while leaving room for additional capital-raising initiatives."

The company is currently accepting indications of interest in the product, which it described as a "unique and valuable addition to the digital asset landscape."

The company’s initiative to form a bitcoin treasury company comes in response to what it described as a "yawning gap in the market for a diversified and opportunistic treasury model that is focused on accumulating and deploying bitcoin."

Despite the growing interest in bitcoin among institutional investors, there are currently no public companies that are holding bitcoin treasury companies on their balance sheets.

This lack of options has limited the ability of individual investors to participate in the bitcoin market, according to Strive.

"We believe that there is a clear and urgent need for a diversified and opportunistic treasury model that is focused on accumulating and deploying bitcoin in a minimally dilutive manner to common shareholders," the company stated.

To fill this void, Strive is merging with Asset Entities to create the first public bitcoin treasury asset management company. The company will combine Strive’s institutional investment experience with Asset Entities’ technology to create a venture that is designed to reshape the landscape of digital asset strategy in public markets.

The company is planning to use a multi-pronged approach to fund its bitcoin treasury operations. In addition to expanding its existing capital-raising activities, Strive is planning to pursue opportunistic acquisitions of cash-rich public companies.

The company said that it is actively seeking to merge with or acquire companies whose equity values are below their net cash positions.

"We believe that this approach could present a multi-billion dollar opportunity to acquire bitcoin in a manner accretive to common equity," the company stated.

Strive is also planning to launch a new product that will allow investors to exchange their bitcoin for shares in Strive in a transaction that is designed to be tax-efficient.

The company said that it is offering a limited opportunity for investors to participate in the formation of the first public bitcoin treasury company in the U.S.

This offering is structured to allow for a potentially tax-free exchange of bitcoin for shares of Strive, subject to the satisfaction of applicable requirements and individual tax circumstances. We are capping this offering at $1 billion, which we believe is sufficient to build a meaningful bitcoin treasury while leaving room for additional capital-raising initiatives.