TLDR
- Solmate Infrastructure bought $50 million in SOL tokens at a 15% discount from Solana Foundation
- ARK Invest owns 11.5% of Solmate as of September 30, 2025
- Tokens will power validators in Abu Dhabi under Solana’s “By Design” program
- Solana Foundation gets right to nominate two board directors
- Purchase occurred during market dip when SOL dropped 22% in two days
Solmate Infrastructure completed a $50 million purchase of SOL tokens directly from the Solana Foundation on Tuesday. The company secured a 15% discount to market price for the transaction.
The purchase happened during last week’s crypto market downturn. SOL prices fell nearly 22% over two days, hitting a two-month low by Saturday.
CEO Marco Santori described the move as buying during “market lows” amid a major liquidation. The company timed the purchase to coincide with the price dip.
Solana Foundation Gets Board Influence
The Solana Foundation negotiated board representation as part of the deal. The Foundation secured the right to nominate up to two directors to Solmate’s board.
The purchased tokens will power bare-metal validators in Abu Dhabi, UAE. This deployment is part of the Solana Foundation’s “By Design” program.
Solmate plans to partner with RockawayX on the staking infrastructure. The company will establish validators in Abu Dhabi with additional projects planned.
ARK Invest’s Ownership Position
ARK Invest holds approximately 11.5% of Solmate Infrastructure shares. A Schedule 13G filing confirmed this ownership stake as of September 30, 2025.
ARK Investment Management ranks as the top shareholder in the company. Solmate currently carries a $1 billion market valuation.
The investment firm previously purchased 6.5 million shares through an oversubscribed PIPE transaction. ARK then added roughly 780,000 shares in subsequent purchases.
Company Rebranding and Strategy Shift
Solmate rebranded from Brera Holdings last month. Brera was an Irish company focused on multi-club football ownership.
The transformation followed a $300 million investment round. Backers included the Solana Foundation, ARK Invest, RockawayX and UAE-based Pulsar Group.
The company shifted its focus from sports to digital asset infrastructure. Solmate now operates as a Solana-focused treasury and infrastructure business.
Santori called the UAE the “Capital of capital” for digital assets. He positioned Abu Dhabi as an optimal location for validator operations.
The CEO described digital asset treasuries as “capital accumulation machines.” This strategy aligns the company’s treasury holdings with its infrastructure buildout.
Market Conditions During Purchase
SOL traded between $191.42 and $209.45 during the October 13-14 period. This represented roughly a 9% price range.
As of October 14 at 15:31 UTC, SOL traded at $197.06. The token showed a 0.22% increase over 24 hours.
The session high reached $211.31 with a low of $192.24. Prices stabilized around $196-$198 after an early rejection near $211.
Risk-off sentiment hit cryptocurrencies on Friday due to rising Sino-U.S. tensions. The sector experienced its largest wave of leveraged liquidations during this period.
