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MicroStrategy, the largest corporate holder of Bitcoin, has long embodied the boldest institutional bet on the cryptocurrency. Co-founder and chairman Michael Saylor’s unwavering belief in Bitcoin has defined the company’s strategy for years. However, that strategy now faces a challenge after a recent SEC filing hinted at the possibility of MicroStrategy being forced to liquidate some of its Bitcoin holdings under financial pressure and the recent Bitcoin price crash. The implications could ripple beyond the company’s balance sheet and affect Bitcoin’s broader market.
Mounting Debt, Negative Cash Flow, And The Bitcoin Lifeline
MicroStrategy disclosed several important financial vulnerabilities in a recent Form 8-K filed with the SEC. At the time of filing, the firm reported holding 528,185 BTC, acquired at an average purchase price of $67,458 per Bitcoin, for a total cost basis of approximately $35.63 billion. However, despite the massive size of its Bitcoin treasury, MicroStrategy admitted that its core enterprise software business has not been generating positive operational cash flow. The company is also shouldering $8.22 billion in debt and facing an annual contractual interest burden of $35.1 million.
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Although it has issued over $1.6 billion in preferred stock tied to substantial annual dividend obligations of $146.2 million, these liabilities are not being met. Instead, MicroStrategy explicitly outlined that it expects to rely on debt or equity financing to meet its obligations, and those efforts may become severely strained if Bitcoin’s price sharply declines. The report warns that if the market value of its holdings drops significantly, it could negatively affect the firm’s ability to raise funds. In such a situation, the company might be forced to sell Bitcoin at a loss.
At the time the report was filed, BTC was trading just 13% above the company’s average purchase price. Because Bitcoin forms the majority of MicroStrategy’s assets, its balance sheet is intimately tied to the crypto’s price. As such, a dip below that level could create a chain reaction of falling stock prices and ultimately force selling pressure even on the price of Bitcoin itself.
Michael Saylor’s Response: Staying The Course
Michael Saylor, MicroStrategy’s co-founder and former CEO, is one of the biggest proponents of Bitcoin and was influential in the company’s adoption of a Bitcoin strategy. Taking to social media platform X after the news of the report broke out, Saylor simply tweeted: “HODL,” a popular mantra among crypto purists that signals long-term conviction.
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The post has had over 1.4 million views on the platform and resonated with many bullish proponents, as seen in the comments section. He followed that with another tweet: “Bitcoin is the Best Idea. There is no Second Best.”
At the time of writing, BTC is trading at $81,900, up by 6% in the past 24 hours. Even if MicroStrategy were to sell any Bitcoin at this point, it wouldn’t be the first sale of its holdings. Back on December 22, 2022, MicroStrategy sold 704 BTC for $11.8 million under similar circumstances.
Featured image from Unsplash, chart from Tradingview.com
