Atai Life Sciences Bets $5 Million on Bitcoin to Survive the Funding Freeze

The company's founder and chairman, Christian Angermayer, explained the decision in an X post on March 20. He said that developing new treatments takes years and requires a steady stream of funding. However, many firms are running out of money while waiting for regulatory approval.

Angermayer pointed out that most companies store their cash in low-return accounts, but it may not be enough to protect against inflation. He believes it's time for biotech firms to consider other ways to manage their finances—like adding Bitcoin to their reserves.

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Atai is currently working on treatments that use substances such as DMT and MDMA to address mental health conditions. While the research is ongoing, the company also needs to make sure it has enough cash to continue operating through 2027.

Angermayer said that the Bitcoin purchase is mostly a way to guard against inflation in the long term. In the short term, it also helps to spread risk by not keeping all funds in the same types of assets.

At current market rates, the company’s $5 million investment would buy just over 59 BTC. This would place Atai among the top 60 public companies holding Bitcoin, according to Bitbo, a real-time Bitcoin dashboard.

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