Nasdaq-listed shipping firm OceanPal Inc. (OP) has officially entered the digital asset space, announcing plans to launch a NEAR Protocol-based corporate treasury as part of a new blockchain and AI strategy. The move positions OceanPal among a growing number of traditional companies diversifying their balance sheets with crypto assets.
OceanPal Raises $120 Million for NEAR-Focused Treasury
According to an announcement released this week, OceanPal raised $120 million through a Private Investment in Public Equity (PIPE) to fund its newly formed subsidiary, SovereignAI Services LLC. The subsidiary will oversee a digital asset treasury strategy centered on NEAR Protocol (NEAR) and spearhead the development of blockchain-native, confidential AI infrastructure.
As part of this initiative, OceanPal aims to accumulate at least 10% of NEAR’s total supply, establishing one of the largest single corporate holdings of the token to date.
“We believe NEAR presents the greatest asymmetric upside among mature projects in the digital asset market,” said Sal Ternullo, OceanPal’s newly appointed co-CEO. “We plan to use this decentralized, confidential compute infrastructure to capitalize on the explosive demand for privacy-first, regulatory-compliant AI across enterprise markets.”
This marks the first known corporate treasury allocation into NEAR, signaling growing confidence in the blockchain’s scalability and privacy-focused ecosystem.
From Shipping to Sovereign AI
The launch of SovereignAI Services LLC reflects OceanPal’s strategic shift from traditional shipping into the intersection of blockchain and artificial intelligence. The firm plans to leverage NEAR’s decentralized infrastructure to power enterprise-grade AI applications that prioritize data privacy, compliance, and transparency.
The company’s advisory board includes major industry figures such as:
- Illia Polosukhin, co-founder of NEAR Foundation
- Richard Muirhead, Managing Partner at Fabric Ventures
- Lukasz Kaiser, AI researcher and co-author of the Transformer architecture at OpenAI
Their involvement underscores OceanPal’s ambition to bridge the gap between traditional enterprise operations and decentralized AI innovation.
A Broader Trend of Corporate Crypto Adoption
OceanPal’s entry into the crypto market echoes a growing corporate treasury diversification trend, following companies like Tesla, MicroStrategy, and Meitu, which have incorporated digital assets into their balance sheets.
In this case, however, OceanPal’s strategy goes beyond holding it integrates token accumulation with technological development, using NEAR’s confidential compute tools to build next-generation AI infrastructure.
“This move shows how traditional companies can evolve,” said David Schwed, OceanPal’s incoming COO, who previously held roles at BNY Mellon, Galaxy, and Robinhood. “We’re not just investing in digital assets we’re building a foundation for privacy-first, compliant AI infrastructure.”
OceanPal’s Leadership Evolution
The announcement coincides with a leadership shake-up at OceanPal.
- Sal Ternullo, formerly of State Street, has been appointed co-CEO.
- David Schwed, a veteran of BNY Mellon and Galaxy, joins as Chief Operating Officer.
Together, the two executives will guide the company’s AI-driven transformation, positioning OceanPal as a hybrid enterprise combining traditional maritime operations with digital innovation.
NEAR’s Expanding Institutional Reach
NEAR Protocol (NEAR) known for its high-performance, privacy-enabled blockchain and developer-friendly infrastructure has increasingly attracted enterprise attention. OceanPal’s move represents one of the first institutional-scale integrations of NEAR into corporate treasury management.
As firms continue to explore crypto-native treasury strategies, OceanPal’s adoption could serve as a blueprint for other non-crypto corporations looking to blend real-world business models with blockchain-powered financial systems.
