Eightco Holdings sold a portion of its indirect investment in OpenAI for about $20 million in cash, saying the shares fetched roughly 40% more than the company’s initial purchase price. It plans to use the proceeds to buy back more of its own stock, while retaining substantial exposure to OpenAI and other assets.
The company also said it has repurchased more than 55 million shares under its existing $125 million buyback program. Since August, those purchases have reduced its shares outstanding by 12.98%, according to Eightco.
Key details
- OpenAI sale: On October 26, Eightco’s wholly owned subsidiary sold part of the company’s indirect interest in OpenAI to a third party for approximately $20 million in gross cash proceeds. Eightco described the sale as a small portion of its investment.
- Price above initial cost: The company said the sale price per share was roughly 40% above its initial purchase price. It said this gain is not reflected in reported treasury figures because those figures carry the investment at cost.
- Buybacks: Eightco said it has repurchased more than 55 million shares under its previously announced $125 million program. The board intends to direct the OpenAI sale proceeds toward additional repurchases, and management said it plans to accelerate the pace of buybacks.
- Treasury snapshot: As of October 28, Eightco reported about $399 million in total treasury assets, comprising:
- Approximately $76 million of indirect OpenAI equity
- Approximately $18 million of Beast Industries equity
- 16,278 ETH
- Nearly 302 million WLD tokens
- Approximately $132 million in cash and cash equivalents
- Management’s view: Eightco’s chief executive said the company had sold part of its OpenAI position after a substantial increase in its value and used the capital strategically to repurchase ORBS shares. A board member said the company continues to hold what he described as valuable and appreciating assets.
What changes for investors
The sale converts part of Eightco’s OpenAI exposure into cash, while leaving the company with an indirect OpenAI stake and its other reported holdings. If the proceeds are used as planned, they will fund additional share repurchases. Eightco argues that the OpenAI gain is not fully visible in its reported asset figures because the investment is carried at cost, and management says its stock trades below the value of its assets. Those are the company’s assessments; the treasury figures include both equity and cryptocurrency holdings.