Wall Street meets crypto's OG silver—with a twist.
GSR Markets and Litecoin creator Charlie Lee just dropped a nine-figure bomb on MEI, signaling institutional appetite for LTC is heating up. The move exposes a calculated treasury strategy that could shake up altcoin portfolios.
The institutional playbook
Forget retail FOMO—this is about cold, hard treasury allocation. The $100M injection reveals how whales are positioning LTC as a hedge against Bitcoin's volatility (and Ethereum's gas fees).
Why MEI?
MEI's infrastructure reportedly offers institutions the compliance rails they crave—because nothing says 'serious investment' like KYC paperwork thicker than a blockchain whitepaper.
As traditional finance scrambles to ape into crypto, this deal proves some old dogs are learning new tricks. Or just recycling 2017's 'digital silver' narrative with better PowerPoints.
Furthermore, GSR and Lee will be working closely, supported by the Litecoin Foundation. As part of the partnership, GSR will serve as an execution partner, strategic advisor, and digital asset treasury manager. Also, Lee and a GSR appointee will join MEI’s Board of Directors.
“This initiative represents the first time a public company is aligning its treasury strategy with Litecoin at an institutional level,” said Joshua Riezman, US Chief Strategy Officer at GSR. “It reflects rising institutional confidence in LTC’s credibility, resilience, and regulatory clarity.”
Per Quynh Ho, Head of Venture Investment at GSR, there is meaningful institutional interest in Litecoin, but not many mechanisms to access it in a secure and structured way. “This investment is designed to close that gap by enabling access to an asset with remarkable staying power,” Ho said.
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This collaboration creates “potential momentum” for LTC’s growth in decentralized finance (DeFi).
It also follows MEI’s review of strategic alternatives, reflecting “its new mission in alignment with both the Litecoin Foundation and GSR’s digital asset management platform.” Also, as of 31 December 2024, MEI had $23.7 million in cash and cash equivalents with no outstanding debt, it reported.
Meanwhile, GSR works on supporting rising ecosystems, it says. It highlighted the incubation of the-based protocol.
Early this year, GSR announced the approval by the UK’s(FCA) ofas a registered crypto asset business. In 2024, it received approval from the(MAS).
It’s our absolute pleasure to work with @SatoshiLite and @litecoin on the launch of the first institutional Litecoin treasury company @MEI_Pharma.
Litecoin has delivered a stable, low-cost, and accessible network for over 14 years – now entering a new chapter in public capital… https://t.co/Tud9L2QX08
“Litecoin has consistently delivered a stable, low-cost, and accessible network for over a decade,” said Charlie Lee, creator of Litecoin. “With leading global transaction volume on platforms like, Litecoin is trusted by users and integrated across retail and payments. This partnership with GSR and MEI brings that utility and mission into an institutional setting for the first time.”
LTC is currently the 26th coin per market cap, with $8.06 billion. It’s up 6.9% in a day, now trading at $106.
Overall, it appreciated 11% in a week, 26% in a month, and 46% in a year. LTC hit its all-time high of $410 in May 2021, decreasing 74.1% since then. Also, it’s up 9,131% from its 2015 all-time low of $1.15.
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