Tech investor Peter Thiel and his venture network Founders Fund have fully exited their position in ETHZilla, according to a Form 13G filed with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission. The filing shows that entities tied to Thiel reported zero ownership in the company by the end of 2025.
🚨 Peter Thiel has fully exited $ETH Ethereum treasury firm ETHZilla, selling his entire stake. pic.twitter.com/MKZGTqshop
— HodlFM (@Hodl_fm) February 18, 2026
The divestment closes a chapter that began in August 2025, when Thiel-backed entities acquired a 7.5% stake during ETHZilla’s shift from biotech to a digital asset treasury strategy. The company had previously operated as 180 Life Sciences before it pivoted toward cryptocurrency accumulation and rebranded.
News of Thiel’s involvement once drove sharp market enthusiasm. Shares surged more than 90% in one trading session at the time. The current environment shows a different trajectory. Pre-market data indicated the stock near $3.32, down roughly 97% from a peak near $107 last August.
Crypto Town Hall commented on the exit in a X post:
"This matters because Thiel is considered smart institutional capital, and a full exit from an ETH treasury firm could signal shifting sentiment, risk reduction, or a strategic rotation away from Ethereum exposure."
Market downturn reshapes treasury strategies
The exit unfolded during a prolonged downturn in the digital asset market. A sharp decline on the 10th of October set the tone for the following months. Data cited from CryptoRank shows Ethereum fell 28.4% in Q4 2025, its first negative fourth quarter since 2022.
The weakness carried into 2026. Ethereum closed January down 17.7%. February recorded another 18.1% decline. The asset traded near $1,983 at press time.
Pressure extended to public firms that adopted treasury models tied to digital assets. Corporate holdings lost value. Equity prices reflected the strain. BitMine Immersion Technologies reported unrealized losses above $7 billion, with shares down 25.7% year to date.
ETHZilla faced similar conditions. The company once held more than 100,000 ETH. It now reports 69,802 ETH on its balance sheet. The reduced exposure reflects a series of liquidations that began late last year.
Asset sales and debt repayments follow strategic pivot
In October, ETHZilla sold about $40 million worth of ether. The proceeds supported a $250 million stock repurchase plan authorized by its board. A second transaction took place in December. The firm sold 24,291 ETH, valued at about $74.5 million, to repay senior secured convertible notes.
Earlier capital plans had emphasized accumulation. The treasury strategy launched in August 2025 after a $565 million raise backed by investors that included Electric Capital, Polychain Capital, and GSR. The company positioned itself as a vehicle that would provide public investors exposure to ether and staking yield.
The shift from buying to selling marked a clear change of course. The company stated in December that future valuation would depend on revenue and cash flow from tokenized real-world assets.
Expansion into tokenized real-world assets
ETHZilla moved toward tokenization initiatives beyond crypto reserves. On Feb. 5, the firm acquired 95 loans tied to modular homes for $4.7 million. The portfolio is planned for tokenization on the Arbitrum network with a target yield of 10.36% per year.
The company also purchased two CFM56-7B24 aircraft engines for token issuance through Liquidity.io, an alternative trading system regulated by the SEC. A dedicated subsidiary, ETHZilla Aerospace, now focuses on aviation-related tokenized equity.
The company remains among the largest corporate holders of Ethereum. It ranks seventh, according to data from Ethereum treasuries.
The gap with market leaders remains wide. BitMine Immersion Technologies holds more than 4.3 million ETH, valued near $8.7–$8.8 billion. Combined reserves of the top ten corporate holders exceed 6.1 million ETH with a total value above $12 billion.
Industry sentiment shifts toward tokenization
Discussion around real-world assets has intensified across the crypto sector. Changpeng Zhao, founder of Binance, previously described tokenization as one of the most promising directions for the industry.
ETHZilla’s pivot aligns with that trend. Mortgage loans and aviation engines now sit at the center of its roadmap. The strategy places less emphasis on pure ether accumulation and more focus on revenue-linked assets.
The company has not issued a public statement on Thiel’s exit. Market reactions, however, reflect the weight of the development. Institutional backing once drove enthusiasm. The withdrawal now underscores a shift in capital allocation within crypto treasury models.
The broader treasury experiment remains under pressure as asset prices fluctuate and financing costs rise. ETHZilla’s next phase will depend on execution in tokenized asset markets rather than direct cryptocurrency accumulation.
Roman Zaika
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