Key Insights
- Digital Asset Treasury Companies avoided forced selling after MSCI confirmed index inclusion.
- MSCI fear drove late-2025 losses more than crypto price action.
- Future moves now depend on Bitcoin and Ethereum performance, not index rumors.
Digital asset treasury companies spent months under pressure after fears spread that they could be removed from major stock indexes. Those fears mattered because index changes can force large funds to sell shares. Moreover, this fear was one of the supposed catalysts for the infamous October 10 market crash.
In early 2026, that risk faded after a key decision from MSCI. This article explains what digital asset treasury companies are, why the MSCI issue hurt them, and what really changes now.
What Digital Asset Treasury Companies are and Why MSCI Mattered?
Digital asset treasury companies are public firms that hold cryptocurrencies as part of their company savings. Instead of holding only cash or bonds, they also hold assets like Bitcoin and Ethereum. The idea is simple. If crypto prices rise over time, the company’s balance sheet also grows.
Some companies focus mostly on Bitcoin. Others hold a mix of Bitcoin and Ethereum. For example, firms like MicroStrategy are known for large Bitcoin holdings, while companies such as BitMine hold Ethereum as part of their treasury strategy.
The big fear came from MSCI, which stands for Morgan Stanley Capital International.
MSCI runs widely followed stock indexes. Many large funds copy these indexes exactly. If a company is removed, those funds could end up selling the relevant company stock, even if nothing else is wrong.
In late 2025, rumors spread that MSCI might remove digital asset treasury companies from its indexes. Investors worried this could trigger forced selling. Prices dropped fast, and fear grew, even though nothing had been confirmed.
The MSCI Risk Collapsed
In early 2026, MSCI confirmed it would not remove digital asset treasury companies from its global indexes during the February review. This ended the biggest risk hanging over the sector.
What is important is that markets started to calm down even before the announcement. On Polymarket, a site where people bet on real-world outcomes, the odds of Strategy being removed from MSCI fell to approximately 11%. This showed traders were already losing confidence in the delisting rumor.
This matters because it explains the price action. The damage did not come from an actual MSCI decision. It came from fear of what might happen. When that fear faded, one major pressure point disappeared.
Now, index-related selling is no longer the main worry. Stocks in this group no longer react to every rumor about MSCI. That specific risk is off the table.
It is worth noting that the MSCI-led delisting threat isn’t a one-time thing. Key figures on X state that another review could come in February 2026, which could again fuel speculations and concerns.
The Prices are Still Struggling
Even after the MSCI decision, many digital asset treasury companies, including MSTR, are still under pressure. This shows something important. The problem was not only MSCI.
Investors are now focused on other issues. These companies often use debt to buy crypto. When crypto prices fall, losses can grow quickly. Investors worry about how long these balance sheets can handle price swings.
This is why prices have not jumped just because the MSCI risk ended. The reason stocks move has changed. Before, the fear of index removal pushed prices down. Now, prices mainly follow the crypto markets themselves.
If Bitcoin or Ethereum rises steadily, these companies can benefit courtesy of the correlation. If crypto prices fall or remain weak, concerns persist. The MSCI issue no longer drives the story, but it also does not fix everything.
So is bullishness ahead? It depends on crypto prices, not index rules. What changed is clarity. Digital asset treasury companies (DATCOs) are no longer priced around fear of being kicked out of major indexes.
From here, their performance is tied much more closely to how Bitcoin and Ethereum behave, and how well these companies manage risk during volatile markets.