Michael Saylor, co-founder of Strategy, has announced that the Bitcoin treasury company will restart its BTC purchases this week, following a recent earnings call. During the call on Tuesday, Saylor indicated that the company may periodically sell portions of its Bitcoin treasury, raising eyebrows within the cryptocurrency community.
In a post on X, Saylor tweeted, “Back to work, BTC,” a message that previously heralded new purchases of Bitcoin, often occurring the day after such announcements. The company last made a BTC purchase on April 27, acquiring 3,273 coins for approximately $255 million, which increased its total holdings to 818,334 BTC. At the time, these holdings were valued at roughly $61.8 billion, according to Strategy’s website.
Strategy had paused its BTC buying spree for a week ahead of the earnings call, where Saylor suggested that the company might need to sell certain Bitcoin holdings periodically to distribute dividends to holders of its credit instruments. This shift in strategy seems to contradict the company’s earlier position of maintaining a “never sell” policy regarding their Bitcoin assets, and some critics argue that such sales could introduce additional selling pressure that might negatively impact Bitcoin’s market price.
During the earnings call, Saylor mentioned, “We’ll probably sell some Bitcoin to fund a dividend, just to inoculate the market, just to send the message that we did it.” This statement elicited mixed responses from the Bitcoin community. For instance, Strategy investor Adam Livingston expressed optimism that periodic sales could bolster the company’s treasury, potentially enabling it to finance more Bitcoin acquisitions in the future.
Bitcoin advocate Samson Mow endorsed the notion that the ability to sell BTC affords Strategy greater flexibility in financial markets. Conversely, some social media sentiment warned that the company’s practices concerning Bitcoin sales and credit instruments could create a “doom loop” that ultimately suppresses BTC’s spot market price.
In response to concerns about the market impact of their sales, Strategy CEO Phong Le clarified that any Bitcoin sales would occur selectively, specifically for purposes such as paying dividend yields and managing tax obligations. He emphasized that neither these sales nor the anticipated purchases should significantly sway Bitcoin’s market price.
Le pointed out that Bitcoin’s average daily trading volume exceeds $60 billion, suggesting that Strategy’s annual dividend commitments of $1.5 billion would be manageable within the broader market context. He noted, “I don’t think we’re driving the price up or down,” while also indicating that the company holds about 4% of the total Bitcoin supply.
As the landscape evolves, all eyes will be on Strategy’s next moves and their implications for Bitcoin’s market dynamics.
