Strategy offloads 32 BTC marking first Bitcoin divestment since 2022; Shares decline at market opening
The globe's biggest publicly-traded Bitcoin accumulator decreased its cache to 843,706 BTC, simultaneously securing $128.3 million via Class A share transactions.
[Update 1:57 P.M. UTC, June 1 -- Updates third paragraph with share price decline in Monday morning trading.]
During the previous week, Strategy divested 32 BTC, representing its initial documented Bitcoin divestment following a tax-loss harvesting transaction in 2022, with the firm seeking to satisfy preferred stock distribution requirements.
At an average transaction price of $77,135 per BTC, Strategy offloaded 32 Bitcoin (BTC) for proceeds of $2.5 million, bringing its total holdings down from 843,738 BTC to 843,706 BTC, as disclosed in a Monday 8-K filing submitted to the US Securities and Exchange Commission.
Following the market's opening on Monday, the company's MSTR shares, which trade on the Nasdaq exchange, experienced a decline exceeding 6%, with the stock last changing hands at approximately $148.70 per share.
According to the company's statement, the funds obtained from the Bitcoin divestment are anticipated to be allocated toward funding distributions associated with preferred stock.
This divestment occurred amid mounting scrutiny directed at Strategy's preferred stock financing approach, with market participants raising concerns about whether obligations related to dividends might ultimately compel the company to liquidate portions of its Bitcoin reserves.
This marks Strategy's initial documented Bitcoin liquidation since conducting a tax loss transaction in 2022, during which the company divested 704 BTC before reacquiring 810 BTC just two days afterward.
Following the announcement, Bitcoin dropped beneath the $72,000 threshold and was changing hands at $71,939 at the moment of publication, based on data from CoinGecko.
Strategy divests $128 million worth of Common A shares
Beyond liquidating Bitcoin during May's final week, Strategy additionally divested 801,994 Class A (MSTR) shares, securing proceeds totaling $128.3 million.
Throughout the week, no preferred stock capital raises occurred, which corresponded with projections from STRC Live, which had forecasted that Strategy would report zero acquisitions for the preceding week.
The transaction potentially caught certain investors off guard following hints from Strategy executive chairman Michael Saylor regarding potential new activity during the weekend.
Late Sunday morning, Saylor shared a post on X stating "Working Better" alongside a bubble chart that tracked Strategy's Bitcoin acquisition activity spanning nearly six years.
At the moment of publication, Saylor had not published any posts on X regarding the $2.5 million Bitcoin divestment, drawing criticism that he has become "radio silent" despite his customary practice of immediately announcing new acquisitions.
Certain industry watchers had been expecting a possible divestment, with cryptocurrency intelligence platform Arkham documenting that Strategy transferred BTC to Coinbase Prime the previous Friday.
During the previous week, Strategy CEO Phong Le acknowledged that the company could potentially liquidate Bitcoin at a future date.
"We'll likely sell Bitcoin at some point in time, but we will be net increasing our Bitcoin and more importantly, increasing our Bitcoin per share,"
Strategy CEO Phong Le
Corporate Bitcoin accumulation slows as liquidation activity surfaces
This divestment by Strategy arrives as certain Bitcoin treasury corporations have decelerated their acquisition activity or initiated reductions of their holdings following months of sustained accumulation.
On Monday, Nasdaq-listed ProCap Financial disclosed it liquidated approximately 52 Bitcoin to finance the buyback of 2 million shares of its common stock at roughly a 50% discount relative to net asset value. According to the company's statement, this transaction enhanced Bitcoin exposure on a per-share basis for shareholders who remained.
More comprehensive Bitcoin treasury activity also demonstrated indications of deceleration, with corporations acquiring a total of 144 Bitcoin throughout the past week, encompassing acquisitions by DDC Enterprise, the Smarter Web Company and Capital B, according to corporate disclosures. This represents a significant week-over-week decrease when compared with the 603 Bitcoin acquired by corporate holders during the prior week.