SkyAI sells half its Solana treasury to fund a premium buyback of its own stock
SkyAI, a Nasdaq-listed Solana treasury company, sold about 1 million SOL to help fund a $201 million tender at $3 a share. Ember's estimates imply sales near $110 a coin, against a purchase cost Lookonchain puts at $194.
The Investor · Invest desk
Key figures: SkyAI says its $3 tender price is a 65% premium to its October 9 closing share price. Lookonchain estimates SkyAI's average SOL cost at around $194 per token. Solana's closing price must stay above $100 throughout the offer. The maximum purchase price is approximately $201 million.
| Figure | Value | Note | Claim |
|---|---|---|---|
| Tender price premium to SkyAI's October 9 close | 65% | 3 | |
| Lookonchain cost, around | $194 per SOL, est. | 20 | |
| SOL close must stay above | $100 | 6 | |
| Max tender cost, approx. | $201 million | 10 |
What happened
- The tender covers up to 46.37 million common shares and about 20.72 million warrants in three classes.
- The offer is expected to open around October 15 and stay open for 10 business days unless SkyAI extends or ends it.
- Solana's closing price must stay above $100 throughout the offer period for the tender to complete.
Why it matters
- Who's exposed exposure Completion depends on the price of the asset SkyAI is selling, and the company says it may sell more, so its own remaining sales bear on the offer's central condition.
- What it costs cost If Lookonchain's cost estimate holds, the sales lock in a loss on the coins that falls on whoever keeps the equity, while tendering holders are paid $3 against an implied close near $1.82.
- Who has to decide decision The board has chosen a premium exit for holders over keeping the reserve intact, so none of the $201 million can go into more SOL and the next call is how much of the remaining coins to sell before the tender closes.
- What doesn't add up contradiction The board called Forward's proposal too low, yet the stock closed near $1.82 before the announcement and the only bid with a published price is SkyAI's own $3.
Next story · Invest · 14h ago
Solana's Shanghai event stops with officers outside and three China stops still to runConfirmed4 publishers
The premium is easier to judge in dollars than in percent. SkyAI says $3 is a 65% premium to its October 9 close [3]. That implies a close near $1.82 [16]. It also says $3 is more than double the 60-day volume-weighted average price [3], so that average was under $1.50 [17]. Across the 67.09 million securities in the offer [22], $3 is about $79 million above where the market valued them before the announcement [18]. The board is paying that to back its view that Forward Industries' proposal undervalued the company [4].
The coins paying for it went out lower. Ember's estimate of $138 million for about 1.25 million SOL sold or moved toward trading venues [14] implies roughly $110 a coin [23], and the latest transfer to Coinbase Prime does not by itself show a sale [15]. Lookonchain estimated SkyAI's average purchase price at around $194 [20], so $110 is about 43% lower [24]. Lookonchain's own figure was a loss of about $46 million on 568,000 SOL, conditional on the tokens being sold and not a company-confirmed loss [20][21]. Apply the same cost and a $110 sale price to the roughly 1 million SOL SkyAI confirmed selling [1] and the gap is near $84 million [25]. That is our calculation, not a reported loss. The report does not include SkyAI's sale prices, its cash balance or the price Forward Industries proposed.
Funding is the next check. At $110 a coin, $201 million is about 1.82 million SOL [28]. SkyAI said it still held about 1 million tokens when it announced the tender [26], worth roughly $110 million at that price [30], so about $91 million has to come from existing cash and proceeds of Solana sales [29][8]. The board said its cash and digital assets exceed the maximum and that no additional borrowing is planned [12].
The clean outcome is that holders tender, Solana stays above $100 and SkyAI pays out about $201 million with no new debt. It can fail in two places. A class could tender under the 50% minimum [5], or Solana could close below $100, only about 9% under the $110 the sales imply [19]. SkyAI would then have to end the offer or use its stated right to waive certain conditions [7]. Its own selling adds to the pressure on that price, and it said it could sell more depending on market conditions [26].
We think "stress" fits the prices and not yet the balance sheet. A stock that closed near $1.82, a coin about 43% under its estimated cost and a reserve cut from more than 2 million SOL in September [27] to about half that [1] are what a treasury company looks like when the market values it below its own bid. But the board reports no new borrowing and assets above the offer's maximum [12], and it is paying holders a premium, so the better description is a deliberate unwind, or rather a deliberate shrinking, with none of the $201 million going into more SOL. We would change that view if a class tenders under 50%, if the $100 floor is waived, or if the cash balance, added to the remaining coins, falls short of $201 million.
What to watch
- How much of each of the three warrant classes and the common stock is tendered once the offer opens around October 15, against the 50% minimum.
- Solana's daily close against the $100 floor during the 10 business days, and whether SkyAI waives any condition.
- Further SkyAI wallet transfers or filings that show actual sale prices and the cash balance behind the board's statement that assets exceed the $201 million maximum.
Information, not investment advice. This story is general information about companies and markets, drawn from cited reporting. It is not a recommendation to buy, sell or hold any security; check the cited sources before acting.
Clarity's read
What the record supports and how the coverage leans. The claims behind it follow.
Reality
- Evidence58
- Adoption
- Not scored
- Hype gap+10
- Incentives68
- Confidence60
Perspective Coverage
5 publishers- Builder
- Builder 5%
- Operator
- Operator 28%
- Investor
- Investor 67%
Claim ledger
Ranked by verification strength, evidence, and original report placement.
- [1]
SkyAI confirmed it sold approximately 1 million SOL, representing half of its cryptocurrency reserves, to help fund a planned $201 million share buyback.
- [2]
SkyAI is a Nasdaq-listed Solana treasury company that trades under the ticker SKYA.
- [3]
SkyAI said the $3 price represents a 65% premium to its October 9 closing share price and more than double its 60-day volume-weighted average trading price.
- [4]
SkyAI rejected an unsolicited acquisition proposal from Forward Industries after its board concluded the offer undervalued SkyAI.
- [5]
Completion depends on conditions including at least 50% of each eligible securities class being tendered and not withdrawn before the deadline.
- [6]
Solana's closing price must remain above $100 throughout the offer period.
- [7]
SkyAI reserved the right to waive certain conditions of the offer.
- [8]
Per an October 11 company announcement, SkyAI plans to use existing cash and proceeds from Solana sales to buy up to 95% of its common stock and three classes of warrants at $3 each.
- [9]
The tender offer covers up to 46.37 million common shares and approximately 20.72 million securities across cash pre-funded warrants, cryptocurrency pre-funded warrants and strategic advisor warrants.
- [10]
At $3 per security, the maximum purchase price would reach approximately $201 million.
- [11]
The tender offer is expected to begin around October 15 and remain open for 10 business days, unless SkyAI extends or terminates it earlier.
- [12]
SkyAI intends to finance the repurchases without additional borrowing, and its board said the combined value of available cash and digital assets exceeded the maximum amount required for the transaction.
- [13]
Blockchain analyst Ember reported on October 12 that another 211,623 SOL had been transferred from a wallet associated with SkyAI to Coinbase Prime.
- [14]
Ember estimated that approximately 1.25 million SOL, worth $138 million, had been sold or moved toward trading venues over five days.
- [15]
The latest exchange transfer does not independently establish that the tokens were sold.
- [16]
The October 9 close implied by a $3 price at a 65% premium is about $1.82.
- [17]
The 60-day volume-weighted average price was under $1.50.
- [18]
The $3 price is about $79 million above the pre-announcement implied market value of the securities in the offer.
- [19]
A $100 close is about 9% below the roughly $110 price implied by the sales.
- [20]
Lookonchain estimated SkyAI acquired its SOL at an average price of around $194 per token and calculated that selling the reported 568,000 SOL, worth about $63.87 million, could result in losses of approximately $46 million.
- [21]
The Lookonchain loss estimate was conditional on the tokens being sold and did not represent a company-confirmed realized loss.
- [22]
The offer covers about 67.09 million securities in total.
- [23]
Ember's estimate implies a SOL price of roughly $110.
- [24]
A $110 SOL price is about 43% below Lookonchain's estimated average cost of $194.
- [25]
On Lookonchain's cost estimate and a $110 sale price, about 1 million SOL would carry a gap to cost near $84 million.
- [26]
SkyAI still held approximately 1 million SOL when the announcement was issued, and said it was monitoring Solana's market price and could sell more tokens depending on market conditions.
- [27]
SkyAI had previously disclosed holdings exceeding 2 million SOL in September.
- [28]
At about $110 a coin, $201 million equals roughly 1.82 million SOL.
- [29]
About $91 million of the maximum $201 million must come from cash and sale proceeds beyond the SOL still held.
- [30]
About 1 million SOL held is worth roughly $110 million at about $110 a coin.
Sources
5 independent publishers whose own reporting we read for this story.
- crypto.newsSolana treasury firm SkyAI sells 1 million SOL, plans $201 million share buyback
1 article · October 12, 2026
- cryptobriefing.comSkyAI sells half of its SOL treasury, plans $201M buyback
1 article · October 12, 2026
- cryptopolitan.comSkyAI sells half its SOL to fund $201M buyback and keep Forward out
1 article · October 12, 2026
- cryptoslate.comSkyAI risks SEC offer failure if SOL falls under $100
1 article · October 13, 2026
- news.bitcoin.comSolana Treasury Firm SkyAI Plans $201M Share Buyback After SOL Sale
1 article · October 12, 2026
Topics and entities
Topics
- Crypto mergers and acquisitions
- Tender offers and buybacks
- Crypto Treasury Companies
- Solana Ecosystem