Wed 20 Nov 2024 ▪
6
min reading ▪ by
Nicolas T.
After Microstrategy and Tesla, Microsoft could soon take the plunge by adopting Michael Saylor’s Bitcoin strategy.
The Bitcoin Strategy
In August 2020, MicroStrategy became the first multinational to make bitcoin its main treasury asset. Its objective was to counter the continued depreciation of the dollar. Very good pick since inflation has soared by 25% in the meantime.
Proof that this strategy works wonderfully, Microstrategy’s stock is appreciating even faster than that of the giant NVIDIA. The first has garnered 430% since January compared to “only” 190% for the second.
Microstrategy feeds on the performance of bitcoin which has gained 120% over the past year. This correlation is explained by the presence of 331,200 bitcoins in its treasury. Clearly, MSTR stock has become a derivative of bitcoin. Obtained at an average price of $49,874 (~$16.5 billion), these BTC are now worth more than $30 billion.
By the way, the difference (430% > 120%) is because Microstrategy acquires most of its bitcoins by issuing debt. In other words, investing in MSTR stocks is like buying BTC with leverage without the risk of being liquidated by volatility.
Other companies such as Block and Tesla have followed in Microstrategy’s footsteps. The list grows longer by the hour. Hoth Therapeutics, Solidion Technology, Thumzup Media, Genius Group, Cosmos Health and BlockStream have very recently adopted the same strategy.
These are small market capitalizations, but a heavyweight should soon enter the fray: Microsoft.
Melting Ice Cube
Microsoft is not a complete stranger to bitcoin. The technology giant has accepted it as payment since 2014 on Windows and Xbox Store.
The Mountain Views firm has not made it a cash asset, but the insolent success of MicroStrategy could change that. The bitcoin strategy will be on the menu at the December general meeting of shareholders.
Here is a passage from the document published by Microsoft in preparation for the shareholder vote:
Microstrategy – which, like Microsoft, is a technology company, but which, unlike Microsoft, holds bitcoin on its balance sheet – has seen its stock performance outpace Microsoft’s by 313% this year. And this although it only does a fraction of Microsoft’s activity. And they are not the only ones. The adoption of bitcoin by institutions and businesses is becoming more and more common. BlackRock, Microsoft’s second largest shareholder, offers its clients a Bitcoin ETF.
Shareholders have until December 10 to make themselves heard. Let’s bet that Michael Saylor’s speech at the AGM will tip the scales. A positive vote could trigger an avalanche, knowing that ten companies, including Apple, Google and Microsoft, hold more than a third of the 2.5 trillion dollars held by the entire S&P 500 (American stock market).
Microsoft has $78 billion in cash, Apple $156 billion, Google $93 billion, Amazon $88 billion, etc. So much money whose purchasing power is like snow in the sun because of inflation.
Bitcoin for everyone
Governments are not left out. Small countries like El Salvador and Bhutan have been accumulating bitcoins for several years. Not to mention those who prefer to remain discreet, particularly in the Middle East, if we are to believe the words of Mike Novogratz.
Countries are already buying bitcoins. I have a good friend in the Middle East who told me he had never seen this. […] World leaders heard Donald Trump say in Nashville that he would be a ‘Bitcoin President.’
PDG de Galaxy Digital sur Bloomberg
How could other nations stand idly by if the US government creates a strategic bitcoin reserve? Even the governor of the Bank of France has recognized the evidence, which is saying…
If Senator Cynthia Lummis has her way, the United States will get its hands on a million bitcoins. In this scenario, the whole world will follow, including Europe. Polish presidential candidate Sławomir Mentzen understood this well:
Poland should create a strategic bitcoin reserve. If I become president of Poland, our country will have very favorable regulations and low taxes. Banks and the regulator will have to provide support. The bill is ready. Let’s stop waiting. Instead of passing absurd cryptoasset bills, let’s create a strategic reserve before it’s too late.
There is a very good chance that Donald Trump will make the Bitcoin bet. With the fresh appointment of Howard Lutnick as Commerce Secretary, the Trump government now has nine bitcoin owners…
Don’t miss our article: “Why the $100,000 is imminent.”
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Nicolas T.
Reporting on Bitcoin, “the goddess of wisdom, feeding on the fire of truth, exponentially growing ever smarter, faster, and stronger behind a wall of encrypted energy”.
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