In Summary

  • Flora Growth has obtained $401 million in funding ($35M in cash, $366M worth of 0G digital tokens) to become the first publicly traded entity with Zero Gravity tokens.
  • The cannabis company, currently listed on Nasdaq, intends to rebrand as ZeroStack, pending shareholder approval, while retaining the FLGC ticker.
  • The investment, spearheaded by DeFi Development Corp, a firm specializing in Solana treasury management, values each 0G token at $3, giving the project a fully diluted valuation of $3 billion.
  • Zero Gravity’s blockchain technology is designed to train AI models using distributed processing, claiming an efficiency boost of 357x compared to existing platforms.
  • The 0G Foundation is set to initiate a token airdrop for early adopters on Monday, with listings on major exchanges to follow.

Flora Growth, a cannabis business trading on the Nasdaq exchange, has successfully completed a $401 million private placement, positioning itself as the pioneer public company holding Zero Gravity (0G) tokens. This deal represents a significant strategic shift from cannabis operations towards backing blockchain infrastructure.

The funding comprises $35 million in cash and $366 million in digital assets, mainly 0G tokens, assessed at $3 apiece. DeFi Development Corp, which manages a $480 million SOL treasury, spearheaded the investment, alongside Hexstone Capital and Carlsberg SE Asia PTE Ltd.

Pending shareholder consent, Flora Growth intends to rebrand to ZeroStack, retaining the FLGC ticker on Nasdaq. The transaction is anticipated to close around September 26, with additional support from Dao5, Abstract Ventures, and Dispersion Capital, among others.

Zero Gravity’s AI Infrastructure Claims

Zero Gravity Labs is in the process of creating a decentralized operating system tailored for training AI models using distributed computing power. The company reports successfully training a massive 107 billion parameter model utilizing these distributed clusters over typical internet connections.

The blockchain initiative states that its approach provides a 357x improvement in efficiency over existing distributed AI frameworks. Zero Gravity is currently operating in the testnet phase, with the launch of the main network tied to the release of its token, according to earlier company statements.

The 0G Foundation, the independent governing body for the protocol, previously secured an agreement to sell $250 million worth of tokens. Prior to the Flora Growth deal, Zero Gravity Labs had independently raised $75 million in seed funding.



Token Launch and Market Valuation

The 0G Foundation will distribute tokens via an airdrop on Monday to thank its early community members. Subsequent to this initial distribution, the tokens are scheduled to be listed on major cryptocurrency exchanges.

Based on the $3 per token valuation employed in the Flora Growth deal, Zero Gravity’s fully diluted valuation would amount to $3 billion. This places the project in a valuation range comparable to other established crypto projects under current market conditions.

Following the announcement of the agreement, Flora Growth’s stock price surged by 69% in after-hours trading. According to Yahoo Finance data, this jump reversed the company’s 32% year-to-date decline.

Flora Growth Corp. (FLGC)
Flora Growth Corp. (FLGC)

Treasury Strategy Details

As a component of this arrangement, Flora will allocate a portion of its treasury to SOL tokens, in addition to the primary investment in 0G. DeFi Development Corp emphasized that it would continue to hold its SOL positions, while also gaining potential benefits from this deployment.

Daniel Reis-Faria, the incoming CEO of Flora Growth, stated that this strategic maneuver offers institutional investors access to AI infrastructure development through equity ownership. The treasury strategy is focused on developing transparent and economically efficient AI model training resources.

Certain investors participating in the private placement received warrants that can be exercised after shareholder approval. The structure of the deal allows participants to potentially profit from the rising value of 0G tokens following their public debut.

The 0G Foundation plans to launch the token airdrop to its initial supporters on Monday, with listings on major exchanges planned to follow shortly thereafter.

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