Solana treasury firm DeFi Development opens $300M CHAD share offering with 13% initial dividend
DeFi Development opens a $300M CHAD share program
Solana treasury company DeFi Development Corp. has opened an at-the-market (ATM) program that lets it sell up to 30 million CHAD preferred shares. An ATM program is a standing facility that lets a company sell shares into the market over time instead of in one fixed sale.
The shares carry a $10 stated amount, which is the base used to calculate dividends, not necessarily the sale price. Multiplied by the 30 million share limit, that gives $300 million of aggregate stated amount. Actual cash raised will depend on how many shares are sold and at what price.
Key numbers
- Up to 30 million CHAD shares available through the new ATM program.
- $10 stated amount per share, for a $300 million aggregate stated amount.
- Regular dividends initially accrue at 13% per year, or $1.30 per share annually.
- If all 30 million shares were outstanding for a full year at an unchanged rate, dividends would accumulate to $39 million on an annualized basis.
- Sales agent R.F. Lafferty can receive up to 0.75% of gross proceeds.
What the September 11 prospectus says
The prospectus filed with the SEC sets no minimum offering amount and gives no assurance that any or all shares will be sold. DeFi Development is not obligated to issue shares, and the agent is not required to sell a specific number or dollar amount. The company must cover specified offering expenses.
CHAD is variable-rate perpetual preferred stock, meaning the dividend rate can change over time. The board determines the regular annual rate at least monthly. Any monthly reduction is limited to 50 basis points, equal to half a percentage point, and is subject to timing, prior-dividend and market-price conditions. The 13% figure applies only initially.
Dividends are cumulative, so unpaid amounts keep building up, but cash payment remains subject to board declaration and legally available funds.
SOL holdings keep growing
DeFi Development reported 2,388,923 SOL and SOL equivalents as of September 11, up 55,491 from August 27. The company attributed the increase to purchases and organic treasury growth without breaking the two apart. The disclosed causes of the increase do not include ATM proceeds.
The program follows a separate CHAD offering that closed September 8 at $8 per share and raised roughly $11 million gross.
What is confirmed
The ATM program exists, its 30 million share limit is fixed, and the initial 13% dividend rate is stated in the prospectus. The company's SOL balance as of September 11 is also confirmed by its own filing.
What is still unclear
How many shares will actually be sold, at what price, what the dividend rate will be after the initial period, and what share of net proceeds will go toward buying SOL. The prospectus does not fix any of these.
Why it matters
The program gives DeFi Development an optional financing channel alongside its existing common-share fundraising. The company says a portion of net proceeds will be used to acquire SOL, the native token of the Solana network, though working capital and strategic initiatives are also permitted uses and there is no fixed allocation to the token.