Russell adds Sharplink, Forward; brings Ether and Solana exposure

FTSE Russell will add Sharplink and Forward Industries to the Russell 2000 and Russell 3000 at the U.S. market open on June 29, giving index funds indirect exposure to Ether and Solana through the companies' crypto treasuries.

The additions come through FTSE Russell's annual rebalancing. The Russell U.S. indexes benchmark about $12.2 trillion in investor assets. Index-tracking funds replicate index compositions, so inclusion typically requires funds that follow the benchmarks to purchase the newly added shares.

Sharplink holds 868,699 ETH, worth about $1.8 billion, on its balance sheet. The company stakes and deploys Ether in onchain yield strategies rather than holding it passively. Sharplink noted the inclusion expands its “institutional visibility” and could improve “access to index-tracking capital.”

Forward Industries holds roughly $585 million in Solana. The company has built its treasury around SOL and described the listing as a benefit to its goal of “compounding SOL-per-share.”

Sharplink's shares (SBET) have been trading near $6.15, close to a one-year low. Forward's stock (FWDI) trades around $4.75, more than 87% below a $39 peak reached last September after the company announced its Solana-focused treasury strategy.

Earlier in the cycle, a firm that repositioned as a leveraged bitcoin proxy entered the Russell 1000 in 2024 amid a rally in bitcoin's price.

Sharplink Chairman Joseph Lubin has argued that Ethereum is being positioned as infrastructure for traditional financial markets and that equities, Treasurys and ETFs could eventually be tokenized and operate onchain. Sharplink uses Ether both as a reserve asset and as an operational layer for onchain finance and tokenization efforts.

FTSE Russell's annual rebalancing routinely moves hundreds of small- and mid-cap names across its indexes; the June 29 changes follow that process.