Strategy, led by Michael Saylor, has temporarily halted its Bitcoin purchases. The company, formerly known as MicroStrategy, announced it was suspending its weekly Bitcoin purchase program this week. This decision attracted market attention as it came ahead of the company's first-quarter earnings report, to be released on Tuesday.
Saylor had previously announced the pausing of purchases
In a post on his X account on Sunday, Saylor stated that there would be no purchases this week, but that they would resume next week. This pause marks only the second time the company has suspended Bitcoin purchases this year. Strategy previously did not make any new BTC purchases during the week of March 23-29.
In recent years, the company has moved away from its traditional software firm identity and become the world's largest publicly traded Bitcoin treasury company. Therefore, Strategy's purchase schedule is closely watched not only by the company's shareholders but also by a wide range of investors following institutional Bitcoin demand.
Strategy's current Bitcoin holdings are approximately 818,334 BTC. This amount represents about 3.9% of Bitcoin's total supply, which is limited to 21 million units. The company's most recent purchase was 3,273 BTC. The average cost per Bitcoin was reported as $77,906. Bitcoin's price hovered around $80,100 in Asian trading on Monday morning, rising approximately 20% in the last month. At first glance, the lack of a weekly purchase might seem like a minor detail. However, the timing makes the decision more significant. Strategy will announce its first-quarter financial results on Tuesday. Some Wall Street analysts expect the company to report a loss per share. While there are significant differences in estimates, the general expectation is that revenue will increase while profitability will remain under pressure. According to Yahoo Finance data, the average estimate of six analysts indicates that Strategy's first-quarter revenue will be around $125 million. This figure represents an increase of approximately 12.6% compared to $111.1 million in revenue during the same period last year. This shows that the company's software business is still generating revenue. However, the market's perception of Strategy has now shifted significantly. Investors are now viewing Strategy not simply as a software company holding Bitcoin, but as a financing vehicle raising capital around Bitcoin. Therefore, Tuesday's financial statement will not be read solely in terms of revenue, losses, or software operations. The real focus will be on whether the company can maintain its capacity to raise new capital and how much support Saylor's Bitcoin buying strategy still enjoys from the market. In this context, the company's preferred stock product, STRC, is noteworthy. STRC stands out with its perpetual preferred stock structure, targeting a price around $100 and offering variable monthly dividend payments. The current annualized dividend rate is approximately 11.5%. The main story presented to investors is based on Strategy's balance sheet and the potential return generated through its Bitcoin-weighted capital strategy. However, this structure is quite sensitive to the sentiment in the Bitcoin market. When the Bitcoin price rises, Strategy's market capitalization is supported, the company's ability to raise capital strengthens, and these resources can be directed towards new Bitcoin purchases. But when market sentiment weakens, the same model may appear more fragile. In this situation, high-yield products may become seen by investors as instruments that carry credit risk rather than stable income.
