Real estate mogul Grant Cardone thinks he has an answer to what ails the crypto treasury industry — pair Bitcoin with rental income.
His fund buys multifamily housing, collects rent, and channels the proceeds into additional Bitcoin purchases, giving investors exposure to property appreciation alongside the asset’s price swings.
It is a model built for a market that no longer rewards passive accumulation.
Companies Search For Ways To Put Bitcoin To Work
That shift in thinking comes as the broader crypto treasury sector posts its weakest numbers in well over a year. Monthly inflows into digital asset treasury companies have fallen to roughly $555 million, according to data from DefiLlama — the lowest reading since October 2024.
DAT inflows in February slowed to $555M, the lowest level since October 2024 pic.twitter.com/tJJqju0kXd
— DefiLlama.com (@DefiLlama) March 2, 2026
At that point, just weeks before the US presidential election, inflows had cratered to around $32 million as investors waited out the uncertainty.
What followed was a historic surge. After US President Donald Trump’s election victory and a sharp turn toward crypto-friendly regulation, monthly inflows rocketed past $12 billion.
The sector looked unstoppable. It wasn’t. Inflows pulled back through most of 2025, stayed well below $10 billion per month, then dropped sharply again heading into 2026.
A prolonged bear market has erased much of those post-election gains. Reports indicate crypto prices have retraced to levels last seen before the 2024 election pump, dragging treasury company valuations down with them and drying up fresh capital.
The Crypto Warehouse Model Loses Its Appeal
Patrick Ngan, chief investment officer at Zeta Network Group, said the old playbook is no longer enough. Companies that simply buy and hold Bitcoin — warehousing the asset with no active strategy — are at risk of being left behind. Those with real operating businesses generating cash flow will have an edge, he said.
“Corporate Bitcoin treasuries now need to show they can actually use the asset, not just warehouse it,” Ngan said.
The options for doing so are expanding. Treasury companies can stake crypto assets to earn rewards on proof-of-stake networks, run mining operations on proof-of-work chains, or put capital to work through decentralized lending platforms.
Each approach turns a static balance sheet into something that generates returns independent of price movement.
A New Blueprint Takes Shape
Cardone’s hybrid model pushes that idea further. By anchoring a fund in physical real estate — an asset with built-in rental demand — he sidesteps the problem of relying entirely on Bitcoin appreciation. Tax advantages tied to real estate ownership sweeten the returns further.
Featured image from Pexels, chart from TradingView