1) Lean Canvas —
HODL Commons, PBC
| Block | Content |
| Problem | CFOs want strategic BTC exposure without risking payroll, getting margin‑called, or relying on opaque custodians/yield schemes. Current “buy‑and‑hold” playbooks don’t operationalize a never‑sell stance responsibly. |
| Customer Segments | VC‑backed SaaS (Series A–D), profitable SMBs with 12–24 mo runway, mission‑driven orgs and PBCs, family‑owned SMEs with long horizons. |
| Unique Value Proposition | Never sell. Never get liquidated. Always be transparent. Open‑source policy + non‑custodial control software + board‑grade governance designed to survive 80–90% drawdowns. |
| Solution | (1) Never‑Sell Policy Engine guardrails; (2) Barbell treasury design (fiat runway + BTC core); (3) Treasury Control Plane (multi‑sig orchestration, LTV tripwires, BTC‑first ledger bridge); (4) optional Mining‑as‑a‑Coupon JV. |
| Key Metrics | Months of fiat runway; BTC reserve ratio; max LTV and % time in green zone; stress‑test pass rate; proof‑of‑reserves cadence; zero‑incident days; governance SLA adherence. |
| Channels | Open‑source releases, CFO/board workshops, auditor partnerships, energy‑site JVs, founder networks, crypto‑skeptic finance forums. |
| Revenue Streams | SaaS (Control Plane); implementation/governance audits; optional mining JV revenue‑share; private workshops (all knowledge artifacts remain free/open). |
| Cost Structure | Eng (wallets, alerting, ledger bridge), compliance & audits, security reviews, content & community ops, minimal sales. |
| Unfair Advantage | Radical transparency + OS standard + skin‑in‑the‑game exec policy (lockups, public covenants). |
| Early Adopters | Crypto‑curious CFOs with scar tissue from 2022; companies with energy‑adjacency; PBCs seeking value‑aligned reserves. |
2) Never‑Sell Treasury Policy (Board‑Ready, v1.0)
Company: HODL Commons, PBC (the model; you’ll substitute your entity)
Effective Date: [Insert Date]
Approved By: Board of Directors (supermajority required)
1. Purpose & Scope
Establish a durable, transparent, never‑sell Bitcoin reserve policy that protects payroll and solvency through severe drawdowns while aligning treasury practice with long‑term mission. Applies to all treasury activities, executives, and vendors.
2. Definitions
- Core BTC Reserve (CBR): Strategic holdings intended to never be sold.
- Liquidity Runway (LR): 12–24 months of fiat OPEX in cash/T‑bills held outside crypto rails.
- BTC‑Backed Credit (BBC): Short‑duration fiat borrowing collateralized by BTC, only within limits below.
- LTV Bands: Green ≤ 20%; Yellow 20–25%; Red > 25%.
3. Treasury Structure
- Barbell Design:
- Left (Safety): LR sized to ≥ 12 months (target 18) of forward OPEX in T‑bills/cash at insured/prime counterparties.
- Right (Convexity): CBR in native BTC under multi‑sig; no third‑party rehypothecation.
- Prohibited: Opaque “yield” products; perpetual leverage; maturity transformation; unsecured lending of BTC.
4. Custody & Key Management
- Multi‑Sig: 3‑of‑5 (or 4‑of‑7) with role separation: CFO, independent director, external security firm, qualified custodian co‑signer, and HODL Commons signer (or your internal Security lead).
- Key Hygiene: HSM/air‑gapped generation, geographically distributed storage, tamper‑evident sealing, annual key ceremony with video and checksums recorded.
- Recovery: Pre‑tested disaster‑recovery runbook; decoy and duress procedures; loss of any single key must not halt operations.
5. Never‑Sell Policy & Movement Rules
- CBR may not be sold. Permitted actions: rekeys, policy‑compliant transfers, BBC within LTV limits.
- Change Control: Any movement >1% of CBR requires board‑level pre‑approval and a public (or stakeholder‑accessible) notice within 7 days.
- Transparency: Publish addresses and monthly proof‑of‑reserves (or auditor‑attested ZK/UTXO set) with explanations of any variance.
6. BTC‑Backed Credit (BBC)
- Purpose: Short‑term working capital only; never for speculation.
- Limits: Initial LTV ≤ 20%; auto‑top‑up at 23%; mandatory deleverage at 25% (“Yellow band” triggers).
- Tenor: ≤ 90 days; no cross‑defaults; no rehypothecation consented.
- Counterparties: Pre‑approved lenders; standard right to audit collateral handling; on‑chain collateral where feasible.
- Kill Switch: If two “Yellow band” breaches occur in 30 days, BBC is paused for 60 days.
7. Liquidity Runway Discipline
- Minimums: Maintain ≥ 12 months LR; if LR < 12 months for any reason, treasury enters Conserve Mode (freeze BBC, freeze new commitments) until restored.
- Funding Order: LR first, then CBR. Any discretionary spend cleared only if LR threshold remains satisfied post‑spend.
8. Monitoring & Alerts
- Tripwires: 15%, 25%, 40%, 60%, 80% BTC price drawdowns vs. 30‑day VWAP; daily LTV check; counterparty risk score.
- Dashboards: Internal books in sats with automatic GAAP/IFRS translation for external reporting.
9. Incident Response (extract)
- Price Shock (≥ 40% in 72h): Convene Treasury Committee (within 6h), confirm LR adequacy, pre‑clear top‑up collateral or unwind BBC.
- Custodian Outage: Activate warm backup; pause all BBC; move to self‑custody flow if outage > 48h.
- Key Compromise: Quarantine path + rekey using recovery quorum; post‑mortem and public note (sanitized) within 14 days.
- Liquidity Crunch: Use BBC (within limits) before touching CBR; freeze non‑critical capex; board briefing.
10. Governance
- Approvals: Routine ops by Treasury Committee; exceptions require board supermajority (≥ 67%).
- Reviews: Quarterly stress tests; annual external security and accounting review; policy re‑ratification yearly.
- Exec Alignment: Exec BTC comp subject to multi‑year lockups mirroring the never‑sell covenant.
11. Accounting & Disclosure
- Internal Unit of Account: BTC/sats;
- External: GAAP/IFRS‑compliant financials; disclose valuation policy, risks, restrictions, and proofs cadence.
- Tax: Model fair‑value P&L effects and cash tax; set aside reserves as advised by tax counsel.
12. Amendments
Document any change with rationale, voting record, and an update to the public transparency page.
Board Resolution Template (excerpt)
“RESOLVED: The Company adopts the Never‑Sell Treasury Policy v1.0 as presented; authorizes the Treasury Committee to implement custody, monitoring, and reporting controls; and restricts any sale of the Core BTC Reserve absent a supermajority exception vote.”
3) Pitch Deck Copy (10 slides)
Slide 1 — Title
HODL Commons, PBC — A Bitcoin Treasury you can defend to your board.
Slide 2 — Problem
CFOs need BTC exposure without risking payroll, margin calls, or opaque custody.
Slide 3 — Insight
“Never sell” works only if policy + software + governance make liquidation unlikely.
Slide 4 — Solution
Never‑Sell Policy Engine, Barbell Treasury, Treasury Control Plane, optional Mining‑as‑a‑Coupon.
Slide 5 — How It Works
- LR (12–24 mo) outside crypto
- CBR under multi‑sig (never sell)
- BBC ≤ 20% LTV with auto‑top‑up
- Proof‑of‑reserves & dashboards
Slide 6 — Risk Controls
Stress‑tested for 80–90% drawdowns; no yield chasing; zero rehypothecation; incident runbooks.
Slide 7 — Why Now
Institutional normalization and updated accounting treatment increase comparability; boards want transparent standards.
Slide 8 — Business Model
Freemium OS; SaaS Control Plane; implementation audits; optional mining JV share.
Slide 9 — Traction Plan
Open‑source launch → founding council pilots → public case studies → auditor partnerships.
Slide 10 — Ask
Join as a Founding Council client; co‑author the open standard; 90‑day pilot commitment.
90‑Day Implementation Checklist (for your first client)
Week 1–2
- Appoint Treasury Committee; adopt policy; size LR and CBR; approve counterparties.
- Run key ceremony; configure 3‑of‑5 multi‑sig; dry‑run recovery.
Week 3–4
- Stand up dashboards (BTC‑first ledger + GAAP/IFRS view); set LTV alerts; publish transparency page skeleton.
Week 5–6
- Move initial BTC into CBR; set BBC rails but keep at 0% utilization; run price‑shock and key‑loss drills.
Week 7–8
- Produce first monthly proof‑of‑reserves; board briefing; auditor touchpoint; decide on mining JV feasibility.
Week 9–12
- Optional: deploy a small (e.g., 10 PH/s) pilot mining JV; publish an open case study.
- Policy re‑tuning based on telemetry; lock in annual audit schedule.
What you can do next
- Paste this policy into your board packet (swap in your entity name), and run the Week 1–2 tasks.
- If you want, I can package this into a 10‑slide deck (PPTX) and a policy PDF with your logo and placeholders for numbers. Tell me your company name and I’ll deliver both files immediately.