Leading business intelligence and software company MicroStrategy has added to its Bitcoin holdings, purchasing an additional 850 BTC for around $37.2 million.
The company is the largest publicly traded holder of Bitcoin and has remained steadfast in its commitment to the cryptocurrency, as shown by its holdings and this latest purchase.
MicroStrategy’s Latest Bitcoin Haul
MicroStrategy founder and CEO Michael Saylor announced the news of the purchase. The latest purchase brings MicroStrategy’s Bitcoin holdings to 190,000 BTC, worth a staggering $8.1 billion.
“We acquired 31,755 additional bitcoins since the end of the third quarter, marking the largest quarterly bitcoin holdings increase in the last 3 years and the 13th consecutive quarter of adding more bitcoin on our balance sheet.”
During a Q4 2023 earnings call held on the 6th of February, MicroStrategy’s chief financial officer, Andrew Kang, revealed that MicroStrategy had acquired 56,650 BTC over 2023, bought at an average price of $33,580. Kang added that the company had benefited significantly from the increase in Bitcoin prices, stating,
“We benefited from the significant increase in bitcoin prices in Q4, and we also continued to leverage our strategic capital markets activities and cash on hand to accumulate more bitcoin and create incremental value for our shareholders. It is through our unique bitcoin strategy and solid track record that we now hold 190,000 bitcoins at an aggregate purchase price of $31,224.”
Betting Big On Bitcoin
MicroStrategy posted a net income of $89.1 million as compared to a loss of $249 million during the previous year. The company’s revenue also showed a decrease of 6.1% within the same time frame, according to the 6th February earnings statement. Saylor stated that the next 15 years will be crucial for Bitcoin because it will be a regulated, institutional, and high-growth period for Bitcoin.
“2024 is the year of the birth of Bitcoin as an institutional-grade asset class. In fact, it’s the first new asset class of the modern era. The next 15 years will be a regulated, institutional, high growth period for Bitcoin, very different from the last 15 years.”
An Extraordinary Year For MicroStrategy
Phong Le, the chief executive officer and president of MicroStrategy stated that 2023 was a big year for the company, during which MicroStrategy was able to raise capital strategically and increase its Bitcoin holdings. 2023 also saw MicroStrategy launch MicroStrategy AI.
“2023 was an extraordinary year for MicroStrategy as we strategically raised capital to significantly increase our bitcoin holdings, and continued to innovate, including by developing and launching MicroStrategy AI, our first to market AI-based BI tool.”
Le further added that the company was able to achieve double-digit growth for the fourth quarter and the entire year.
“We achieved double-digit subscription services revenue growth for both the fourth quarter and full year, demonstrating our ongoing commitment to transition our business to the cloud. We believe that the combination of our operating structure, bitcoin strategy, and focus on technology innovation provides a unique opportunity for value creation for our shareholders.”
Bitcoin ETFs A Catalytic Moment
MicroStrategy is the first publicly traded company to purchase Bitcoin for capital allocation. Since its first Bitcoin purchase in 2020, the company’s share price has grown over 300%. In comparison, the share price of companies such as Microsoft and Google have grown 95% in the same timeframe. Saylor stated he believed that the introduction of spot Bitcoin ETFs was a catalytic moment for Bitcoin, taking the asset from a medium of exchange to a store of value, something which he believes weakens past criticisms of the asset.
“We don’t need to address any of the currency criticisms anymore. Simply as a store of value, there’s no reason Bitcoin can’t continue to outperform and 100X from where it is right now.”
Disclaimer: This article is provided for informational purposes only. It is not offered or intended to be used as legal, tax, investment, financial, or other advice.
Source: https://cryptodaily.co.uk/2024/02/michael-saylors-microstrategy-snaps-up-850-more-bitcoin-for-37m