Cathie Wood’s ARK Invest has officially selected Canada-based SOL Strategies as its exclusive staking services provider for its Digital Assets Revolutions Fund.
The action is a significant step in ARK’s growing focus on blockchain infrastructure, with SOL Strategies to take over the fund’s validator operations.
In addition, institutional staking provider BitGo, which had partnered with SOL Strategies since April, will be in the background in the partnership.
The deal highlights ARK’s growing focus on staking and blockchain-native sources of revenue, particularly within the Solana ecosystem.
Validator Operations Relocated to SOL Strategies’ Staking Infrastructure
Under this new partnership, ARK Invest will relocate its validator operations to SOL Strategies’ staking infrastructure.
The Digital Assets Revolutions Fund, launched in 2020, typically maintains between 10 and 12 cryptocurrencies with a view to achieving long-term returns over a four- or five-year market cycle.
According to SOL Strategies CEO Leah Wald, the company now manages staking services for an increasing institutional client base. Aiming to offer compliant and stable access to Solana through tailored validator infrastructure and delegated staking.
BitGo’s role as a custody partner adds additional security and validity to the staking process.
Also Read: Cathie Wood’s Ark Invest Offloads $43.8 Million In Coinbase Shares As The Stock Approaches Its ATH
Solana Network Sees Increasing Institutional Involvement
Staking is a crucial variant for network security, particularly in proof-of-stake networks like Solana.
Players lock tokens to authenticate network activity and earn rewards per epoch, which is typically two to three days in Solana.
So far, SOL Strategies has five validators that collectively manage over 3.59 million SOL (approximately CAD $888 million or USD $647.2 million), staked by over 5,700 unique wallets.
Surprisingly enough, as low as 12% of the funds are from SOL Strategies’ treasury, a testament to the immense third-party trust in the validator services of the company.
Risks and Financial Performance in the Staking Sector
While staking offers potential returns, it also carries some risks, including the possibility that a validator may go rogue.
Funds that are staked may get slashed in such a scenario, resulting in losses for investors.
Approximately 403 million SOL tokens, valued at around $73.5 billion, are currently staked on the network, indicating strong institutional participation.
Although it posted a Q2 2025 loss of $3.5 million, SOL Strategies experienced significant growth in staking and validation revenue.
The trend is similar to that of other firms like DeFi Development Corp. and Upexi, both of which have also entered the business of Solana staking with rising institutional adoption.
Also Read: Cathie Wood’s Ark Invest Acquires 84K Coinbase Shares For $13.3M Amid Market Slump
ARK Invest’s Broader Shift Toward Blockchain Infrastructure
This new investment is part of a larger strategic move by ARK Invest away from traditional tech stocks and into blockchain-focused investments.
As a parallel transaction to the SOL Strategies deal, ARK recently shed $148M worth of Coinbase and Roblox shares to fund a $174M purchase of Bitmine, which redirected its business towards an Ethereum-focused treasury firm.
Bitmine shares are reportedly up over 400% year-to-date, drawing further institutional attention.
These steps show ARK’s increasing confidence in decentralized technologies and staking-based income streams.