ETHZilla Pivots to Aircraft Engine Acquisition as Part of Real-World Asset Strategy
In a $12 million deal, ETHZilla has purchased two aircraft engines, following the firm's recent announcement to shift its strategy toward real-world asset tokenization.
Following the liquidation of a portion of its cryptocurrency holdings and a strategic pivot toward tokenizing real-world assets, the Ethereum-based treasury firm ETHZilla has made its first major acquisition of physical assets by purchasing a pair of jet engines.
In a regulatory disclosure filed on Friday, ETHZilla revealed that it acquired the two aircraft engines via ETHZilla Aerospace LLC, a subsidiary created specifically for this transaction, paying $12.2 million in cash for the assets.
Both engines, which are designed for use in large-scale commercial aircraft, were accompanied by pre-existing lease contracts with a major airline carrier, allowing the company to immediately start generating revenue from the assets.
This acquisition follows statements made in December by ETHZilla's chairman and chief executive officer McAndrew Rudisill, who announced the company's intention to "build an operating business to bring real-world assets (RWA) on-chain through tokenization," representing a significant departure from its previous strategy of simply accumulating and holding Ether (ETH).
Today we are launching our updated website to better reflect our mission - modernizing capital markets through real-world asset tokenization
— ETHZilla (@ETHZilla_ETHZ) January 21, 2026
In his December announcement, Rudisill indicated that ETHZilla's strategic direction will "initially focus on aerospace assets such as aircraft engines and airframes to tokenize."
"Members of our leadership team and board have deep relationships in the aerospace industry, which we are leveraging to build an initial pipeline of assets to tokenize without the need for additional partnerships," he added.
ETHZilla stock slides 95% from peak
ETHZilla is one of numerous cryptocurrency treasury firms that experienced significant share price appreciation throughout 2025, before experiencing dramatic declines as the broader digital asset markets entered a period of substantial correction toward the end of the year.
The stock price of ETHZilla (ETHZ) climbed to an all-time high exceeding $100 during August, but has subsequently declined by 95% to close at $5.24 on Friday's trading session, based on data from Google Finance.
The price of Ether has similarly experienced downward pressure, with the cryptocurrency down 40% from its August peak of approximately $5,000 to its current trading level of $2,800 as of Sunday. According to data from CoinGecko, ETHZilla maintains a treasury of 69,802 ETH valued at $198.5 million.