Crypto's hottest new trend: publicly traded companies buying bunches of bitcoin
By ALAN SUDERMAN
It's one of crypto's hottest trends: publicly traded companies buying bitcoin and then buying even more.
President Donald Trump's media company just announced a plan to raise $2.5 billion to buy bitcoin, joining a growing number of so-called 'bitcoin treasury companies' as the world's most popular cryptocurrency hits all-time highs.
The companies buy bitcoin for different reasons: Some hold it as a hedge against inflation or to signal support for the cryptocurrency industry, while some firms have made using debt and stock sales to buy bitcoin their primary business strategy.
'The world at large has no idea what's happening and they're in for a big shock,' Dylan LeClair, an executive at the Japan-based Metaplanet, which recently went from being a budget hotel firm to a bitcoin treasury company, said at a recent crypto conference. 'This is a one-way train, nothing is going to stop this.'
The massive increases in some firms' stock price may seem to validate LeClair's bravado, but there are plenty of warnings that a downturn in bitcoin's prices could lead to large selloffs.
Here's a look at bitcoin treasury companies by the numbers:
That's how many bitcoins owned by MicroStrategy – the undisputed goliath of bitcoin treasury companies.
With nearly 3% of the total bitcoin supply, MicroStrategy owns more bitcoins than every other bitcoin treasury company combined. It also owns more bitcoin than every nation state combined, according to the tracking site bitcointreasuries.net.
Now called Strategy, the software company first started buying bitcoin in 2020 with reserve cash. Now, its software business is a small part of a perpetual bitcoin-buying machine that uses a variety of strategies – like selling shares or issuing debt – to keep growing its bitcoin holdings.
That's how much MicroStrategy's stock price has increased in the last five years, compared to around 1,000% gain in bitcoin and the 1,500% jump for chipmaker and stock market darling Nvidia during that same period.
The company's success has boosted the profile of MicroStrategy's founder and chairman, Michael Saylor, who has visited Trump at Mar-a-Lago and the White House while becoming bitcoin's enigmatic high priest.
'Bitcoin is a swarm of cyber hornets serving the goddess of wisdom, feeding on the fire of truth, exponentially growing ever smarter, faster, and stronger behind a wall of encrypted energy,' Saylor said in a social media post.
Saylor's success has also spawned many imitators.
'It's kind of shocking … that it took someone four years after Michael Saylor started doing it to finally do it and pull the trigger and now it feels like everyone's pulling the trigger,' said Eric Semler, the chairman of Semler Scientific, a healthcare company that started acquiring bitcoin last year.
That's the average purchase price of bitcoin for half of the 61 publicly traded bitcoin strategy companies, excluding bitcoin mining companies and bitcoin exchange-traded funds, according to a recent analysis by Standard Chartered.
Geoff Kendrick, the bank's head of digital assets research, said in the report that restrictions on investors buying bitcoin directly help explain the popularity of bitcoin treasury companies, as their stocks can serve as bitcoin proxies. But as crypto becomes more mainstream, the case for investing in bitcoin treasury companies becomes weaker, Kendrick said.
He added that bitcoin's volatility could force some newer bitcoin treasury companies to sell their holdings to satisfy their debts if it falls under the purchase price.
'The question then becomes, how much pain can companies withstand before being forced to sell their BTC?' Kendrick said, referring to the symbol for bitcoin.
That's how much of a one-day percentage increase in stock prices firms have seen after recently announcing plans to hold other types of cryptocurrencies as corporate treasuries, highlighting how the appetite for such companies extends beyond bitcoin.
SharpLink Gaming, a gambling marketing firm, saw its share price increase by more than 400% after it announced plans to buy up to $425 million in Ethereum, the second most popular form of cryptocurrency. And crypto firm Upexi saw its stock price soar more than 300% after it announced plans to buy $100 million of Solana, a cryptocurrency popular in the meme coin ecosystem.
© Copyright 2025 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed without permission.
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Yomiuri Shimbun
4 hours ago
- Yomiuri Shimbun
Akazawa Calls Latest U.S. Trade Talks ‘Deep,' Offers No Prediction on Any Imminent Outcome
The Yomiuri Shimbun Economic revitalization minister Ryosei Akazawa speaks to reporters after his sixth talks with U.S officials over tariffs in Washington on Friday. Economic revitalization minister Ryosei Akazawa and U.S. government officials held their sixth ministerial negotiation talks on Friday in Washington over the tariff measures of the administration of U.S. President Donald Trump. After the meeting, Akazawa told reporters, 'We held very deep discussions to search for a possibility of reaching an agreement.' The Japan-U.S. ministerial talks have been held for four consecutive weeks. Akazawa held talks with U.S. Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick for about 70 minutes and with U.S. Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent for about 45 minutes, one after another. After the talks, Akazawa did not clearly mention a possibility of reaching an agreement during Group of Seven summit to be held from Sunday to Tuesday in Canada. A Japan-U.S. summit is scheduled to be held on the sidelines of the G7 summit. He briefly said, 'I want to refrain from making any predictions. So far, the Japanese government has repeatedly demanded that all U.S. 'reciprocal tariffs' on automobiles, steel and aluminum exports from Japan be abolished. Akazawa avoided clearly answering a question over whether he reiterated the demand in the latest talks. In the preceding talks, the Japanese side proposed to increase imports of U.S. agricultural products and reexamine 'non-tariff trade barriers' against U.S. cars in line with requests from the Trump administration. The Japanese government is also considering collaborations on strengthening supply chains for rare earths and semiconductors. In the evening on Friday, Prime Minister Shigeru Ishiba held telephone talks with Trump for about 20 minutes and agreed to hold an in-person meeting separately from the G7 summit. Attention will focus on whether the leaders will be able to reach an agreement based on discussions in the ministerial talks. Rare earth magnets The government has begun internal discussions on proposing cooperation with the United States to strengthen supply chains for powerful magnets made with rare earths in the ongoing Japan-U.S. trade negotiations over the Trump administration's tariff policy, according to Japanese government sources. China holds a major share of the market for high-performance magnets. The government expects that Japan and the United States will promote the building of supply chains which will not rely on China and aim to make progress in the tariff talks, which are entering a decisive phase. Magnets made with rare earths are essential for manufacturing motors of electric vehicles and devices used in missiles. In the case of neodymium magnets, a typical product of the kind, China holds more than an 80% share of *global production. Japan, which has high-level manufacturing technologies, holds a 15% share. The United States is struggling to find ways to deal with China's restrictions on exports of rare earths. The Japanese government aims to show a stance of contributing to U.S. manufacturing industries in fields in which Japanese manufacturers have high competitiveness. In doing so, the government wants to draw concessions from the United States on tariff issues, such as the 25% additional tariff on Japanese-made cars, as automobile manufacturing is Japan's core industry.
Japan Times
4 hours ago
- Japan Times
Reports of online rice scams surging in Japan
Consumer consultations in Japan over fraudulent websites advertising sales of rice have been surging in recent months, the Consumer Affairs Agency said, warning that the number of such sites may increase further amid high prices for the staple. Reports about fraudulent online rice shops to consumer affairs centers around the country spiked to 335 cases in April and May alone, on par with the number of cases logged in all of fiscal 2024, at 337. In one case, a consumer reported being unable to cancel an order for rice after not receiving a confirmation email for their purchase via credit card. In another, a consumer received a receipt for a purchase of sunglasses instead of rice. It is important to carefully check whether prices are not suspiciously low and if company contact information is correctly displayed in order to identify scam websites, according to the National Consumer Affairs Center of Japan. Saving screenshots of final confirmation pages for purchases is an effective way to prepare for possible issues, it added. The Consumer Affairs Agency said that malicious sites may increase, after the government started selling stockpiled rice to the public. Yutaka Arai, commissioner of the agency, told a news conference last week that he hopes consumers will carefully check whether websites are reliable.
Japan Today
5 hours ago
- Japan Today
Trump clears path for Nippon Steel investment in U.S. Steel, so long as it fits the government's terms
President Donald Trump speaks at U.S. Steel Corporation's Mon Valley Works-Irvin plant on May 30, in West Mifflin, Pa. By JOSH BOAK President Donald Trump on Friday signed an executive order paving the way for a Nippon Steel investment in U.S. Steel, so long as the Japanese company complies with a 'national security agreement' submitted by the federal government. Trump's order didn't detail the terms of the national security agreement. But the iconic American steelmaker and Nippon Steel said in a joint statement that the agreement stipulates that approximately $11 billion in new investments will be made by 2028 and includes giving the U.S. government a ' golden share " — essentially veto power to ensure the country's national security interests are protected against cutbacks in steel production. 'We thank President Trump and his Administration for their bold leadership and strong support for our historic partnership," the two companies said. "This partnership will bring a massive investment that will support our communities and families for generations to come. We look forward to putting our commitments into action to make American steelmaking and manufacturing great again.' The companies have completed a U.S. Department of Justice review and received all necessary regulatory approvals, the statement said. 'The partnership is expected to be finalized promptly,' the statement said. U.S. Steel rose $2.66, or 5%, to $54.85 in afterhours trading Friday. Nippon Steel's original bid to buy the Pittsburgh-based U.S. Steel in late 2023 had been valued at $55 per share. The companies offered few details on how the golden share would work, what other provisions are in the national security agreement and how specifically the $11 billion would be spent. White House spokesman Kush Desai said the order 'ensures U.S. Steel will remain in the great Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, and be safeguarded as a critical element of America's national and economic security.' James Brower, a Morrison Foerster lawyer who represents clients in national security-related matters, said such agreements with the government typically are not disclosed to the public, particularly by the government. They can become public, but it's almost always disclosed by a party in the transaction, such as a company — like U.S. Steel — that is publicly held, Brower said. The mechanics of how a golden share would work will depend on the national security agreement, but in such agreements it isn't unusual to give the government approval rights over specific activities, Brower said. U.S. Steel made no filing with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission on Friday. Nippon Steel originally offered nearly $15 billion to purchase U.S. Steel in an acquisition that had been delayed on national security concerns starting during Joe Biden's presidency. As it sought to win over American officials, Nippon Steel gradually increased the amount of money it was pledging to invest into U.S. Steel. American officials now value the transaction at $28 billion, including the purchase bid and a new electric arc furnace — a more modern steel mill that melts down scrap — that they say Nippon Steel will build in the U.S. after 2028. Nippon Steel had pledged to maintain U.S. Steel's headquarters in Pittsburgh, put U.S. Steel under a board with a majority of American citizens and keep plants operating. It also said it would protect the interests of U.S. Steel in trade matters and it wouldn't import steel slabs that would compete with U.S. Steel's blast furnaces in Pennsylvania and Indiana. Trump opposed the purchase while campaigning for the White House, and using his authority Biden blocked the transaction on his way out of the White House. But Trump expressed openness to working out an arrangement once he returned to the White House in January. Trump said Thursday that he would as president have 'total control' of what U.S. Steel did as part of the investment. Trump said then that the deal would preserve '51% ownership by Americans,' although Nippon Steel has never backed off its stated intention of buying and controlling U.S. Steel as a wholly owned subsidiary. 'We have a golden share, which I control,' Trump said. Trump added that he was 'a little concerned' about what presidents other than him would do with their golden share, 'but that gives you total control.' The proposed merger had been under review by the Committee on Foreign Investment in the United States, or CFIUS, during the Trump and Biden administrations. The order signed Friday by Trump said the CFIUS review provided 'credible evidence' that Nippon Steel 'might take action that threatens to impair the national security of the United States,' but such risks might be 'adequately mitigated' by approving the proposed national security agreement. The order doesn't detail the perceived national security risk and only provides a timeline for the national security agreement. The White House declined to provide details on the terms of the agreement. The order said the draft agreement was submitted to U.S. Steel and Nippon Steel on Friday. The two companies must successfully execute the agreement as decided by the Treasury Department and other federal agencies that are part CFIUS by the closing date of the transaction. Trump reserves the authority to issue further actions regarding the investment as part of the order he signed on Friday. © Copyright 2025 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed without permission.
