Bitcoin Treasuries Added $3.5 Billion in January—Almost All By Strategy

In brief

• Strategy accounted for 93% of Bitcoin purchases among digital asset treasuries last month.
• That represented the firm’s busiest month in a year.
• Other DATs saw their share shrink for a fourth straight month.

Bitcoin-buying firms were viewed as an emerging source of demand last year, but they are struggling to keep up with market leader Strategy as the digital asset’s price slides. Last month, the Tysons Corner, Virginia-based firm accounted for 93% of Bitcoin purchased among publicly traded firms, according to a report from Bitcoin Treasuries. Strategy acquired 40,150 Bitcoin during the period compared to 3,080 Bitcoin among competitors. In total, digital asset treasuries added nearly 43,230 Bitcoin worth $3.5 billion last month. That marked an acceleration from 28,900 Bitcoin in December, but it was far less than the 147,000 Bitcoin acquired in November 2024 amid President Donald Trump’s re-election. 

Sentiment surrounding digital asset treasuries has shifted notably over the past six months, with a 70% plunge in Strategy’s stock price sparking frustration among investors. On Thursday, Strategy’s shares changed hands around $125, according to Yahoo Finance. The drop has intensified scrutiny towards the sustainability of Strategy’s business model, but the report suggests that the company is reasserting itself as a leader among peers. Excluding Strategy, Bitcoin-buying firms have notched smaller purchases for four straight months. Last week, Strategy disclosed a $12.4 billion fourth-quarter loss. The company’s holdings showed billions of dollars in losses on paper, but Strategy co-founder and Executive Chairman Michael Saylor maintained that Strategy functions as a “digital fortress.” At some points last year, it appeared that Strategy’s acquisitions were slipping relative to its peers. In July, for example, Strategy’s competitors purchased 56,000 Bitcoin, while the company that wrote the playbook for accumulating Bitcoin bought 31,000 Bitcoin.

Still, Strategy’s approach to purchasing Bitcoin is nuanced compared to most peers. In addition to taking on debt, the company has introduced several types of preferred shares. So far, the company’s variable rate preferred share (STRC) has seen the most growth at $3.4 billion. The product currently pays annualized dividends of 11.25%, saddling Strategy with additional costs. However, the company has stockpiled cash to pay those dividends The report notes that Strive and Metaplanet have also issued dividend-paying preferred shares. Last year, analysts warned that Bitcoin-buying firms could become forced sellers of the asset depending on their corporate structure. In June, an analyst at investment bank Standard Chartered noted that most had bought Bitcoin for an average price of $90,000. Last month, four public companies decided to reduce holdings. Bitcoin miners Riot Platforms and Bitdeer sold 1,363 Bitcoin and 490 Bitcoin, respectively. Omaha, Nebraska-based fintech Exodus Movement sold 198 Bitcoin, while Bitcoin Treasury Corp shed 2 BTC. Saylor said this week that Strategy will not be forced to sell its holdings and will keep buying “forever”—even as its BTC stash sits more than $7 billion underwater due to the falling price of Bitcoin. In December, the company established a cash reserve to cover debt and dividends payments, though Saylor admitted then that the firm still could sell BTC if needed. Users on Myriad—a prediction market platform operated by Decrypt’s parent company, Dastan—have penciled in a nearly 25% chance that Strategy sells Bitcoin by the end of the year. Strategy may be anchoring Bitcoin purchases among publicly traded companies, but January still saw an uptick in the overall number of firms announcing purchases. The figure increased to 30 from 20 in December, despite their waning impact.