MicroStrategy buys more bitcoin ahead of bitcoin ETF deadline

MicroStrategy continues to load up on bitcoin with a purchase of 14,620 bitcoin.

The company shelled out $615 million for its most recent purchase, meaning that it’s spent nearly $1.2 billion on bitcoin since November. Previous disclosures, filed at the end of November, showed that the company bought roughly 16,000 bitcoin for nearly $600 million.

MicroStrategy Chairman and former CEO Michael Saylor posted on X that the company acquired its bitcoin at an average price of $31,168. In total, it’s spent roughly $5.9 billion for its 189,150 bitcoin. 

Read more: MicroStrategy bought nearly $600M bitcoin in less than 1 month

The 14,620 bitcoin acquired as of Dec. 27 were acquired at an average price of $42,110. Bitcoin (BTC) is hovering around $42,900 at the time of publication.

MicroStrategy kicked off its spending spree in June with a purchase of 12,000 bitcoin for around $340 million. The purchase, at the time, marked the largest buy the software platform company had made in two years.

Saylor, in the company’s November earnings call, said that the potential approval of spot bitcoin ETFs would be a “catalytic event” benefiting companies with bitcoin exposure.

“I think we’ll see more and more analyst coverage from traditional Wall Street banks as these ETPs make bitcoin exposure available,” he said on the earnings call. “More coverage means more education, means more awareness, and that results in more interest.” 

Read more: A look at crypto ETF milestones in 2023 — and where spot bitcoin funds stand

He’s not worried about the potential launch of any bitcoin ETFs either. In a Dec. 19 interview with Bloomberg, Saylor said that the ETFs charge a fee. MicroStrategy, on the other hand, gives investors exposure without a fee.

“We offer a high-performance vehicle for people that are Bitcoin long investors,” he said.

Bloomberg Intelligence Analysts James Seyffart and Eric Balchunas have speculated that there’s a possibility that the US Securities and Exchange Commission approves some of the bitcoin ETF proposals by Jan. 10. 

BlackRock, Ark, 21Shares and Franklin Templeton are just a few of the 13 potential proposals aiming to get funds launched. 

MicroStrategy’s stock is up over 337% in the past year, and is currently floating near its 52-week high of $622 in pre-market trading.

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