Microsoft to hold BTC on its balance sheet?

The proposal notes a corporation’s “fiduciary duty” to maximize shareholder value by protecting profits from debasement in an inflationary world

article-image

HJBC/Shutterstock modified by Blockworks

share


This is a segment from the Forward Guidance newsletter. To read full editions, subscribe.


We already know MicroStrategy loves bitcoin. How about Microsoft?

To catch you up, a Thursday filing showed a proposal the National Center for Public Policy Research intends to submit for consideration at Microsoft’s annual meeting.

It notes a corporation’s “fiduciary duty” to maximize shareholder value by protecting profits from debasement in an inflationary world. The proposal calls on Microsoft — with $484 billion in assets, as of March 31 — to consider diversifying its balance sheet with assets beyond the US government securities and corporate bonds it currently holds. Namely, bitcoin.

BTC’s volatility is acknowledged. Still, the proposal notes “companies should evaluate the benefits of holding some, even just 1%, of its assets in bitcoin.” 

The proposal shouts out the similarly named MicroStrategy, which held 252,220 BTC as of last month. MicroStrategy’s stock is up 249% this year, while Microsoft’s is up 16%.

MicroStrategy founder Michael Saylor also had a message for Microsoft CEO Satya Nadella:

Loading Tweet..

It doesn’t appear this proposal will pass. 

In a statement of opposition, Microsoft’s Board of Directors said that “volatility is a factor to consider in evaluating cryptocurrency investments for corporate treasury applications that require stable and predictable investments to ensure liquidity and operational funding.”

The company already has “strong and appropriate processes in place” for its corporate treasury, the board adds — noting: “This requested public assessment is unwarranted.”

Perhaps the takeaway, though, is that the board notes it has evaluated bitcoin and other cryptocurrencies in the past, and that Microsoft “continues to monitor trends and developments related to cryptocurrencies to inform future decision-making.” 

So the company’s not closing the door on BTC altogether. I’d say we can add that to the list of positive developments made during a year in which the asset has gone more mainstream.


Get the news in your inbox. Explore Blockworks newsletters:

Tags

Decoding crypto and the markets. Daily, with Byron Gilliam.

Upcoming Events

Old Billingsgate

Mon - Wed, October 13 - 15, 2025

Blockworks’ Digital Asset Summit (DAS) will feature conversations between the builders, allocators, and legislators who will shape the trajectory of the digital asset ecosystem in the US and abroad.

recent research

Unlocked by Template (10).png

Research

Innovations on Aptos’ technical design through Raptr, Shardines, and Zaptos approach near-optimal latency and throughput by unlocking 100% utilization of network resources, with the capacity to settle 260k transactions per second with latencies less than 800ms. The original Move language was revamped with the launch of Move 2, supporting more expressivity in smart contract logic and a scalable ability to interact with high volume datasets. The ecosystem has benefitted from strong asset inflows, now hosting over $1.3B in stablecoins, $450M in bridged BTC, and $530M in RWAs. Activity in the Aptos ecosystem has grown notably over the past year, with monthly application revenue reaching ~$835k and monthly DEX volumes growing to over $5B, both at new all time highs.

article-image

Interchain Labs will focus on sovereign L1s and institutional demand, abandoning plans for smart contracts on the Cosmos Hub

article-image

Also, only three tokens have outperformed bitcoin so far this year: XMR, HYPE and SKY

article-image

The fund group has submitted proposals in recent months for other funds that would hold litecoin, solana, XRP, HBAR, Sui and others

article-image

Momentum’s back — BTC leads, risk assets follow

article-image

Ondo Finance’s acquisition of blockchain development company Strangelove follows its buy of Oasis Pro

article-image

Cryptocurrency and stock traders alike had a lot to unpack Wednesday