From an ordinary data analytics software company to the world's largest Bitcoin holder, the story of Strategy (formerly MicroStrategy) represents one of the biggest corporate bets in business history during the digital asset era.
Previously, Thairath Money's Digital Frontiers featured Strategy as a case study of a company boldly challenging mainstream trends by investing heavily and devising complex financial strategies to fund Bitcoin purchases, transforming it from a conventional software provider into a major cryptocurrency player, often recognized as a Bitcoin Treasury Company.
However, the game is changing again as Strategy signals that Bitcoin, which it once vowed never to sell, is now ready to be sold if it benefits shareholders in the future. Following this announcement, the company's shares fell about 3% in after-hours trading.
In its Q1 2026 financial report showing a net loss of $12.5 billion, Strategy announced a new stance on Bitcoin. Moving away from Michael Saylor's original founding principle of never selling Bitcoin to accumulate long-term value, the company is now considering selling Bitcoin to increase cash liquidity for debt restructuring or if it enhances Bitcoin value per share in the long run.
Phong Le, the company's chairman and CEO, stated the company will adopt a more proactive portfolio management approach, emphasizing that “Bitcoin will be sold only when it benefits the company.” The company aims to remain a net aggregator but prioritizes increasing Bitcoin value per share to create long-term shareholder value.
He further explained that Bitcoin per share is an internal metric Strategy uses to assess how much “Bitcoin entitlement” each shareholder has per share. This figure can change due to various factors such as additional Bitcoin purchases, new share issuance, or Bitcoin sales used for debt management or share buybacks.
//According to annual financial documents, Strategy remains the largest Bitcoin holder among publicly listed U.S. companies. At the end of Q1 2026, it held 818,334 Bitcoins valued at about $61.8 billion, with an average cost of approximately $75,500 per coin, representing nearly 4% of the total global Bitcoin supply. The company has added about 63,000 Bitcoins this year, with a Bitcoin return of roughly 9% since the start of the year.
Le's statement indicates that Strategy’s shift toward selling some Bitcoin to hold cash or manage debt does not mean reduced faith in Bitcoin but reflects the reality that the original model relying on premium valuation and traditional capital markets is entering a phase requiring greater risk management.
Last year, Strategy reported a Q3 2025 net profit of $2.8 billion, exceeding market expectations but significantly down from the previous quarter’s $10 billion profit.
During the 2020-2024 bull market, Bitcoin’s long-term price rise enabled Strategy’s model, driven by the “premium value” between its stock price and Bitcoin value—measured by the company’s mNAV (Market-Adjusted Net Asset Value)—to continuously raise funds via share issuance to buy more Bitcoin. Investors accepted a high premium on Strategy, believing it could use equity and debt to raise capital, purchase Bitcoin, and generate exponential growth.
However, in 2025, volatility pressures, especially Bitcoin’s price slowdown, combined with heavy debt burdens, directly impacted the premium value. The premium dropped significantly to about 1.2 times from nearly 4 times the previous year, tightening fundraising capability and disrupting the prior growth cycle. This issue has drawn close market scrutiny.
Many analysts agree this turning point forces Strategy to seek alternative tools beyond relying solely on capital markets.
Michael Youngworth of Bank of America noted that success in preferred stock fundraising shows the company still finds investors who believe in its story, though such funding carries high risk. Meanwhile, short-seller Jim Chanos questioned the sustainability of a model dependent on stock price and investor confidence if market conditions turn unfavorable.
In this context, selling Bitcoin becomes a new balance sheet management tool rather than a change in stance, helping the company increase liquidity amid tougher fundraising, reduce debt pressure and financial burdens, and maintain strategic flexibility in the long term.
In other words, this decision indicates Strategy may not be abandoning its long-held belief in Bitcoin, but the company—famed as a legend in this space—must structurally adapt its business model to balance growth ambitions with the real risks it will face going forward.
Follow the Facebook page: Thairath Money at this link -