08. September 2025
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Dan Ives to Join Firm Focused on Acquiring Altman-Backed Worldcoin
Veteran Wall Street tech analyst **Dan Ives** has been announced as chairman of Eightco Holdings (ticker: OCTO), the small Nasdaq-listed company that said it will pursue a first-of-its-kind strategy to acquire **Worldcoin (WLD)** — the crypto project associated with OpenAI CEO Sam Altman. The move ties big-name market credibility to a bold corporate crypto treasury play.
Quick Insight: Eightco announced a roughly **$250M private placement** (plus a reported additional $20M strategic investment from BitMine) to buy Worldcoin tokens and said it may change its ticker from OCTO to “ORBS” after the deal closes — a plan that sent the company’s shares surging sharply on the news.
1. What Eightco Plans to Do
Eightco’s stated strategy is to adopt **WLD (Worldcoin)** as a primary treasury reserve asset — mirroring prior corporate crypto treasury strategies like MicroStrategy’s bitcoin accumulation. The company aims to deploy proceeds from the placement to acquire WLD tokens and build a Worldcoin treasury.
2. Funding & Strategic Investors
The fundraising includes a $250M private placement and a roughly $20M equity commitment from BitMine (a crypto/mining investor). Reports name other institutional and crypto-focused backers participating in the deal. The offering was expected to close in mid-September 2025.
3. Market Reaction
Following the announcement, Eightco’s shares spiked dramatically — at times surging several thousand percent amid heavy volume — as traders raced to price in the new business plan and the high-profile board appointment. Market coverage stressed how volatile and speculative the reaction has been.
4. Why This Matters
Worldcoin is a controversial-but-high-profile project that pairs the **WLD token** with a biometric identity system (the “Orb” and World ID) intended to verify human users online — a capability many see as increasingly important in an AI era. A public company adopting WLD as a treasury asset raises fresh regulatory, governance, and market-structure questions.
Final Thoughts
The appointment of Dan Ives lends Wall Street visibility to Eightco’s pivot into crypto and Worldcoin specifically. While the plan could create significant upside if WLD adoption grows, it also concentrates corporate treasury risk in a nascent, highly volatile token and brings added regulatory and reputational scrutiny. Investors and observers should treat this as a high-risk strategic pivot and watch for final deal terms and regulatory commentary as the financing closes.
Reminder: This is breaking news (Sept 8, 2025). Details may evolve quickly — check official Eightco filings, Nasdaq notices, and reputable financial press for finalized terms and regulatory disclosures.
