Strategy’s Bitcoin Stockpile Nears BlackRock’s ETF Holdings After $1 Billion BTC Buy

Strategy indicated on Monday that it spent $1 billion on Bitcoin last week, adding to its stockpile using proceeds that came solely from its flagship preferred share.

The Bitcoin-buying firm said in an announcement that it now owns nearly 781,000 Bitcoin, a 1.8% jump compared to the week prior. With Bitcoin recently changing hands around $70,900, the company’s holdings were worth $55.3 billion, according to CoinGecko.

The Tysons Corner, Virginia-based firm’s latest purchase, totaling roughly 14,000 Bitcoin, marked its largest in nearly a month. Meanwhile, the company issued notable amounts of its variable-rate preferred shares, STRC, for a second straight week.

The product that currently pays 11.5% in monthly dividends has become foundational to Strategy’s acquisitions in recent weeks, serving as an alternative source of funding compared to common shares that have plunged 57% over the past six months. Strategy shares have fallen about 2.5% following Monday’s open bell to $125.50, according to Yahoo Finance.

Strategy’s latest purchased showed that the firm led by co-founder and Executive Chairman Michael Saylor was capable of amassing significant amounts of Bitcoin without diluting common shareholders, a fear expressed by onlookers as its stock price tumbled last year.

Some remarked on Monday that Strategy was within striking distance of BlackRock’s spot Bitcoin exchange-traded fund, which holds an estimated 790,000 Bitcoin, according to crypto data provider CoinGlass. Assuming inflows are flat over the next week, Strategy would need to purchase around 9,000 Bitcoin to surpass the industry-leading vehicle on Wall Street.

Since the product’s debut last July, the Bitcoin behemoth has raised $3.55 billion via STRC, outweighing the preferred share’s $2.5 billion public offering. Although Saylor has billed the product as an alternative to traditional savings accounts for risk-averse investors, including retirees, STRC has found adoption among other Bitcoin-buying firms in recent months.

After doling out more STRC, which is designed to trade near its $100 par value, Strategy now faces $1.2 billion in annual dividend obligations, according to its website. When the preferred share trades above that threshold, Strategy issues more STRC to expand its holdings.

The company’s latest STRC issuance was its largest in nearly a month. In March, the firm raised nearly $1.2 billion via the dividend-paying product. Last week, STRC traded near the $100 mark for five straight trading days, according to Yahoo Finance.

The company’s recent reliance on STRC has raised questions about the approach’s sustainability. To address doubt about whether Strategy could consistently pay dividends on its products, the company shored up $2.25 billion in cash reserves last year.

In a post to X on Sunday, Saylor said the company’s ARR, or the ratio of annual dividends and interest expense to the market value of its bitcoin holdings, currently stands around 2.05%.

“If Bitcoin grows faster than that over time, we can cover our dividends indefinitely without issuing new MSTR shares,” he said, hinting at the pressure that the company’s penchant for issuing common shares has historically put on shareholders.

Last week, TD Cowen analysts trimmed their Strategy price target for a second time this year to $350 from $440. The assessment reflected a lower expected price for Bitcoin this year. The company, meanwhile, reiterated a “Buy” rating for the Bitcoin-buying firm.

On Myriad, a prediction market owned by Decrypt’s parent company Dastan, traders grew increasingly confident that Strategy wouldn’t pare its holdings this year. They foresaw a 12% chance that Strategy would sell Bitcoin in 2026, down from 18% a month ago.