Bitcoin is Going Corporate, But NAV Markets Says the Real Shift Is What Comes Next

When Michael Saylor first put Bitcoin on MicroStrategy’s balance sheet in 2020, many dismissed it as reckless. But five years and billions in gains later, it’s a benchmark.

Now in 2025, Bitcoin is showing up on the books of hotel chains in Japan, chipmakers in France, and public companies from Austin to Tokyo. The launch of U.S. spot Bitcoin ETFs added further legitimacy, and perhaps even more surprisingly, financial advisors (not hedge funds) are now the largest holders of Bitcoin ETF shares, according to the latest 13F filings. In other words, Wall Street has stopped laughing.

But while the headlines such as “Volcon stock surges on BTC move,” “LiveOne raises $9M for Bitcoin yield strategy,” “Metaplanet targets $5B BTC stack”  keep rolling in, one question is being asked behind closed doors: What happens after you buy Bitcoin?

That’s where most companies get lost. For every MicroStrategy (MSTR), there are ten firms that fumble the execution: no governance plan, no risk framework, no narrative beyond the headline.

That’s where Lionel Iruk comes in. Iruk is a blockchain attorney and legal strategist at NAV Markets, an advisory firm that helps both traditional companies and crypto-native teams build Bitcoin-centric treasury models — but not as publicity stunts. NAV works on turning those headlines into real institutional capital pathways: public market strategies, clean governance structures, legal frameworks that can stand up to SEC review, and cap tables that inspire investor trust.

In this interview, Lionel breaks down:

• Why the real opportunity isn’t just in buying Bitcoin (but in structuring it properly),
• How NAV approaches crypto treasuries differently than hype-chasing firms,
• What zombie companies and idle crypto whales have in common,
• And how the new wave of SEC regulation, far from being a threat, may be crypto’s last best chance at legitimacy.

We’ve watched a dramatic shift in how Bitcoin fits into the financial system – spot ETFs, listed miners, and now entire companies reinventing themselves as crypto treasuries. Why is this happening now?

Lionel Iruk: It’s funny how fast the narrative flipped. Not long ago, crypto was still treated like an outsider – experimental, even dangerous. Then MicroStrategy put Bitcoin on its balance sheet, and suddenly everyone started asking, “Wait… can we do that too?”

That one move opened the floodgates. Financial advisors who used to be ultra-cautious are now the largest holders of spot Bitcoin ETFs, surpassing hedge funds. That’s not just a stat. That’s a signal. Hedge funds were chasing short-term plays. Advisors, on the other hand, are buying with intention. They’re treating Bitcoin like part of a diversified, long-term portfolio—next to gold, not Dogecoin.

And they can only do that now because the infrastructure is finally there. ETFs made Bitcoin accessible inside the same systems advisors already use. But the trade-off is that expectations are now sky-high. If you’re a protocol or company trying to reach that kind of investor, you need clean governance, real disclosures, and structure. If you don’t have that, they won’t even look your way. Bitcoin’s growing up. The question is: can the rest of the space keep up?

Not every company has Saylor’s balance sheet or appetite for risk. How does NAV Markets adapt that model for more traditional players?

Lionel Iruk: You don’t need to go all in like Saylor to signal strength. What we help companies do is take that same core idea: that Bitcoin belongs on a balance sheet, and build a structure around it that makes sense for their size, their jurisdiction, and their investors. It might mean pairing Bitcoin with existing revenue, building a hybrid treasury, or using BTC to anchor a public market relisting. The principle is the same. The execution is tailored.

So we’ve seen Bitcoin become a legitimate treasury asset on Wall Street, but is this just a big-cap game, or are smaller players and global companies getting in too?

Lionel Iruk: It’s not just the MicroStrategys and Metaplanets of the world anymore. We’re getting calls from mid-market firms: manufacturers, logistics companies, even healthcare, that aren’t trying to make headlines. They’re just watching their fiat exposure get eroded and saying, “There’s got to be another way.”

Some of them are in the U.S., sure. But a lot are coming from places where the local currency has been losing value for years. In those cases, Bitcoin is a form of protection. The problem is they don’t always know how to operationalize that strategy. That’s where we step in: not just buying the asset, but building the treasury structure, working through audit implications, aligning with cross-border regs.

Because let’s be real: most of these teams don’t want to build a crypto division from scratch. They want to plug in. They want a roadmap. And they want someone to help them do it without blowing up their core business. That’s the gap we fill.

You’ve advised both crypto-native teams looking to go public and traditional firms searching for new relevance. Who tends to approach public markets with more clarity, or is it chaos on both sides?

Lionel Iruk: It’s usually chaos, just different types. Crypto teams often have capital, communities, and momentum. But they’ve never answered to a board, let alone filed a 10-K. So when they say “Let’s go public,” they usually have no idea what that entails. They underestimate how much structure and discipline is required.

Traditional firms are the opposite. They know how public markets work, but many of them, especially zombie companies, are out of stories. Their charts are flat, and they think slapping a Bitcoin headline on their investor deck will suddenly turn things around. That kind of desperation can be just as dangerous.

What really works is when you bridge both sides. A crypto-native project with technical merit, paired with a public shell that still has governance infrastructure? That’s powerful. We’ve done that at NAV Markets. It’s about aligning incentives and creating something real that both markets can understand.

These “zombie companies” you mention – publicly traded but long forgotten – why are they so interesting right now for crypto players?

Lionel Iruk: Because they’re sitting on untapped potential that no one’s watching. You’ve got companies that are still technically public – filing financials, maintaining compliance, but their stock is dead. Nobody’s paying attention. That’s incredibly valuable real estate in a market where regulatory approval is harder than ever.

Now picture this: a crypto whale, someone who’s been sitting on $100M worth of ETH, acquires a $10M shell, injects a Bitcoin or Ethereum treasury, and builds a new management team. That alone can turn the company into a $50M+ paper asset overnight. With the right narrative, that could 7x without ever needing the token to move.

Even more interesting? Legacy protocols like Dash, Verge, or Litecoin. Take Dash – it’s still solid tech with a real community, just no market relevance anymore. But if they launched a Bitcoin-backed treasury and wrapped it in a public market strategy? That could be a 2,000% narrative just waiting to happen.

People in crypto don’t know these plays exist. But we’re working with both sides – whales who don’t know what to do with their capital, and public companies who don’t know how to evolve. The upside is massive if you structure it right.

You’ve talked about pairing legacy crypto tokens or altcoins with Bitcoin to create new public market narratives. That sounds innovative, but also risky. Why do you think that hybrid treasury model could be the next big unlock?

Lionel Iruk: Because it speaks both languages. Bitcoin gives you credibility. It’s the reserve currency of crypto. But most token projects have no bridge to institutional capital. Their treasuries are chaotic, disclosures nonexistent, and their cap tables don’t translate to public markets.

If you take a legacy project, and you structure a treasury strategy that’s 70% BTC, 30% native token, suddenly, you’ve got a narrative that makes sense to both sides. Institutions recognize Bitcoin. The crypto community rallies around the comeback.

The key is structure. You need a clean shell, clear disclosures, and a treasury that isn’t just there to moon the token. We’ve modeled out what a hybrid treasury looks like – not just for price impact, but for long-term balance sheet stability. That’s the kind of thinking that makes investors pay attention.

When crypto projects talk about going institutional, whether that means raising traditional capital, adding a Bitcoin treasury, or going public, what’s the biggest mistake you see?

Lionel Iruk:  Honestly? The biggest mistake is doing nothing. They wait and overthink. I talk to founders all the time who say, “We’ve done fine without the SEC. Why change now?” And sure, maybe they’ve survived the wild west. But that era’s ending.

Right now, the U.S. system is basically offering a kind of amnesty. Clean up your structure, align with regulation, and we’ll let you access the deepest capital markets in the world. But that invitation won’t last forever. If you miss the window, the door will close, and the retribution won’t be subtle.

Look at Justin Sun and Tron. TRX hasn’t 2x’d in six years. But through a public markets strategy, Sun potentially turned a modest investment into a 70x paper return. That didn’t rely on token pumps. It relied on structure and timing.

Too many founders are waiting for another bull cycle to “fix everything.” But you don’t need the market to move, you need to move with it.

You work with companies that already have assets or treasuries in place, but what about teams that are starting from scratch? Do you help them build from the ground up?

Lionel Iruk: Absolutely. Sometimes a founder comes in with nothing more than an idea—or even just a rough vision—and we help turn that into something real. That could mean validating the concept, mapping out the legal and financial structure, picking the right jurisdiction, and, if it fits, developing the token or product itself.

It’s not just advice on paper. We stay involved from the first sketch through to something that’s fully market-ready, with the right compliance, governance, and investor appeal. Think of it as part accountant, part blockchain development shop, and part business strategist. The earlier those foundations are set, the easier it is to scale without hitting major roadblocks later.

Most people think of crypto whales – early ETH buyers, token-rich founders – as passive holders waiting for another run. But could they play a more active role in shaping public markets?

Lionel Iruk: They could be the catalysts for the next financial paradigm, if someone would just show them how.

Whales don’t need liquidity. They need leverage. Not the leverage you get from trading, but the kind that comes from scale, relevance, structure. Right now, many of them are sitting on $50M, $100M, even $500M in crypto. But they’re waiting for it to moon again. What they’re missing is that public markets already offer that same 5x or 10x potential, just in a different form.

Buy a distressed shell, add a credible treasury model, and execute the right governance plan? That’s how you turn idle capital into generational influence. But most whales don’t know this playbook exists. They don’t have the structure or the partners to pull it off.

That’s where we come in at NAV Markets. We help them bridge that gap. If they want to stop waiting and start building, this is how they do it.

The regulatory atmosphere in the U.S. has changed rapidly in 2025. Has the SEC’s tone altered how crypto companies think about going public?

Lionel Iruk: Absolutely. It’s no longer just about cracking down but about carving a path forward. The SEC isn’t just chasing lawsuits anymore. With the launch of Project Crypto, new token classification guidelines, and even clearer ETF rules, they’re finally putting up guardrails instead of landmines. The GENIUS Act is giving stablecoins real structure. The CLARITY Act is cleaning up the SEC vs. CFTC turf war.

For the first time, crypto companies have a roadmap. And what they’re learning is this: if you build right, the system will let you in. But you need clean cap tables. You need disclosures that hold up. You need treasury strategies that make sense to institutional investors.

We work with clients to align with that reality before the door closes. Because it will. And when it does, no one’s going to have time for tokenomics written on a napkin.

There’s growing pressure in crypto to “grow up” – better structures, more transparency, stronger compliance. Where is that pressure really coming from?

Lionel Iruk: It’s coming from the market. Not the headlines. The actual capital.

Investors (wealth managers, family offices, public funds) they’re tired of hype cycles. They want predictability. They want to know your treasury isn’t sitting in cold storage. They want board governance, audit trails, and real financial reporting.

And that pressure trickles down. Founders are feeling it. LPs are demanding it. Even influencers are being forced to rethink their playbooks.

At the same time, public companies are holding billions in Bitcoin. ETF frameworks are becoming normalized. Analysts are tracking crypto the way they track equities. That kind of legitimacy also raises the bar – if your model can’t stand up to scrutiny, you’ll be left behind.

The financial world is whispering, “We’re ready with capital. But only if you’re ready with structure.”

The bottom line

Crypto is walking through the Wall Street door, paperwork in hand. From Bitcoin treasuries to tokenized equity models, the lines between traditional finance and digital assets are blurring fast. What began as a rebellion is becoming infrastructure.

But legitimacy doesn’t come from headlines. It comes from clean governance, regulatory alignment, and market strategies that withstand scrutiny. And that’s exactly where most teams fall short.

NAV Markets is stepping into that gap. Not to chase hype, but to engineer outcomes: helping crypto-native founders navigate institutional waters, guiding public companies through digital asset integration, and turning idle capital into viable financial vehicles. Whether it’s a Bitcoin treasury or a hybrid token-equity play, the goal is the same – making crypto credible at scale.