Bolt Projects' High-Wire Act: Soaring Growth vs. Nasdaq Delisting Threat

BERKELEY, CA – December 29, 2025 – Bolt Projects Holdings, a developer of innovative biomaterials, today painted a picture of two starkly different realities. On one hand, the company announced stellar preliminary financial results for fiscal year 2025 and issued aggressive, upwardly revised guidance for 2026, signaling surging demand for its sustainable ingredients. On the other, this commercial triumph is unfolding in the shadow of a persistent and critical threat: a potential delisting from the Nasdaq stock exchange.

This duality has placed the Berkeley-based firm at a precarious crossroads. While its Vegan Silk™ technology gains significant traction in the beauty and personal care market, its corporate and financial structure is under intense pressure. A proposed $30 million financing deal from an activist investor looms as a potential lifeline, making the company's next steps a high-stakes balancing act between rapid growth and regulatory survival.

A Story of Explosive Growth

Bolt Projects' latest financial disclosures underscore a period of accelerating commercial success. The company announced preliminary, unaudited revenue for the fiscal year 2025 is expected to hit approximately $4.5 million, marking a dramatic year-over-year growth of more than 200%. The momentum appears to be building, with fourth-quarter revenue projected to exceed $2.7 million, a 100% increase compared to the same period last year.

Profitability is also showing marked improvement. The company anticipates its gross profit margin for the full fiscal year 2025 to be over 20%, a significant figure that is further boosted by an estimated 38% margin in the fourth quarter. This trend reflects growing efficiency and pricing power.

Buoyed by this performance, Bolt has confidently raised its guidance for fiscal year 2026. The company now projects revenues of $11.0 million, a substantial increase from its previous forecast of $9.0 million and representing a 144% jump over its 2025 results. Even more striking is the revised gross profit guidance, which has been lifted to $4.0 million from a prior estimate of $1.0 million—a projected 300% increase over 2025. Management attributes this optimism to the successful market adoption of its current ingredients, planned portfolio expansion, and new pricing strategies. The company also plans to introduce a new ingredient from its Vegan Silk™ Platform and anticipates a double-digit percentage reduction in its cost of goods sold, aiming for a long-term gross margin target of 60%.

Navigating Nasdaq's Choppy Waters

Despite its impressive commercial trajectory, Bolt's position on the public market remains perilous. The company has been navigating a series of non-compliance notices from Nasdaq for over a year. The trouble began on November 6, 2024, with a deficiency letter for failing to maintain a minimum bid price of $1.00 per share.

This was followed by a more serious notice on February 10, 2025, stating that Bolt's stock had failed to meet the minimum market value of listed securities ($50 million) and publicly held shares ($15 million) for 30 consecutive business days. After the initial 180-day grace period expired, Nasdaq issued a formal delisting notice on August 12, 2025.

Following an appeal to the Nasdaq Hearings Panel, Bolt was granted an extension until December 31, 2025, to regain compliance. The company has since outlined a new strategy: instead of meeting the market value rules, it intends to satisfy the exchange's minimum equity standard and transfer its listing from the Nasdaq Global Market to the Nasdaq Capital Market. While Bolt has stated its intent to request a further extension, such a grant is entirely at the discretion of the Panel. The company's own filings acknowledge the uncertainty, stating that “there can be no assurance that the Company will ultimately regain compliance or be able to maintain compliance with all other applicable requirements for continued listing on the Nasdaq.”

The Vegan Silk Revolution

At the heart of Bolt's commercial success is its Vegan Silk™ Technology Platform. The company uses a fermentation process to produce b-silk and other fully vegan, biodegradable ingredients that serve as high-performing, sustainable alternatives to traditional components used in the beauty and personal care industries. Supported by an intellectual property portfolio of over 80 granted patents, the technology is tapping directly into a powerful consumer and industry shift toward eco-friendly and ethically sourced products.

The global biomaterials market is experiencing robust growth as brands move away from petrochemical-derived ingredients and respond to consumer demand for clean and sustainable solutions. Bolt is carving out a niche in this competitive landscape, which includes established players like Amyris, known for its sustainable squalane, and Geltor, a developer of animal-free collagens. Bolt's key differentiator is its unique “Vegan Silk” branding and technology, which offers a novel value proposition to an expanding ecosystem of brand partners seeking both performance and sustainability.

A $30 Million Lifeline from an Activist Investor

To fuel its ambitious growth and help address its precarious financial standing, Bolt is pursuing a crucial financing transaction of up to $30.0 million from Murchinson Ltd., a Toronto-based activist investment firm. Murchinson is known for taking significant stakes in public companies and advocating for strategic changes to unlock shareholder value, as seen in its past engagements with companies like Destination XL Group.

The proposed deal is structured with convertible notes and warrants. This means the debt taken on by Bolt could eventually be converted into company stock, potentially leading to significant dilution for existing shareholders. The capital injection is seen as vital, providing the funds needed for operational expansion, R&D for new ingredients, and potentially shoring up the company's balance sheet to help meet Nasdaq's equity requirements.

However, the deal is not yet complete. It remains subject to the finalization of definitive documents and, most importantly, shareholder approval. This sets the stage for a critical decision point where current investors must weigh the immediate benefits of a large capital infusion against the long-term impact of dilution from a new, influential stakeholder. The outcome of this vote, combined with the Nasdaq panel’s decision, will undoubtedly define Bolt Projects' trajectory in the coming year, determining whether its remarkable innovation and growth can translate into sustainable public market success.