Ether Treasury Company GameSquare Buys CryptoPunk NFT for $5.15M

Digital media company GameSquare (GAME) said it bought Cowboy Ape #5577 of the CryptoPunk non-fungible token ($NFT) collection from Robert Leshner for $5.15 million.

The Frisco, Texas-based company, which described the purchase a strategic investment, also said it added just over $10 million worth of ether ($ETH) to its treasury. Leshner, the founder of Compound Labs, an open-source protocol for algorithmic money markets on Ethereum, received the company's preferred stock in payment

CryptoPunks are one of the earliest and among the most influential $NFT projects. Created in 2017, they inspired much of the modern crypto art movement and set a precedent for digital ownership on the blockchain.

"GameSquare plans to leverage CryptoPunks for marketing activations, community building, and potential licensing opportunities," the company said in a Thursday announcement.

The firm's purchase of 2,742.75 $ETH takes its total holdings to 12,913.49 $ETH, valued at around $48.5 million.

A number of companies have unveiled ether treasury strategies in recent months as a means of generating passive yield through $ETH staking. Foremost among them is SharpLink Gaming(SBET), now the largest corporate ether holder, with over 360,000 $ETH.

Firms in the media, entertainment and gaming sectors like SharpLink and GameSquare may see an ether treasury strategy as a means of advancing their Web3 aspirations through investing in the Ethereum ecosystem and thereby gaining exposure to NFTs, decentralized finance (DeFi) and more.

GAME shares spiked to $1.44, an intraday gain of nearly 8%, following the announcement, before pulling back. At the time of writing, it was trading 4.8% higher at $1.33.