In anticipation of a spot Bitcoin exchange-traded fund (ETF) approval, business intelligence firm MicroStrategy buys 14,620 Bitcoins, increasing its total stash to 189,150 BTC
Between November 20, 2023, and December 26, 2023, MicroStrategy and its subsidiaries acquired an additional 14,620 BTC for $615.7 million in cash, the company disclosed in its 8-K filing with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission.
According to the filing, the most recent Bitcoin stash cost MicroStrategy, including fees and other expenditures, approximately $42,110 per BTC.
The acquisition increases the number of Bitcoins held by MicroStrategy and its subsidiaries to 189,150, representing an approximate $5.9 billion purchase price and an average purchase price per BTC of $31,168.
MicroStrategy’s most recent Bitcoin acquisition follows a November 2023 transaction involving the firm and 16,130 Bitcoins for $36,785 per Bitcoin. Before this, the organization purchased 6,067 BTC in October and September 2023 and 12,333 BTC in June.
Aligned with the vision of its co-founder and main Bitcoin supporter, Michael Saylor, the acquisition provides additional proof of MicroStrategy’s dedication to Bitcoin investment.
The announcement arrives mere weeks before January 10, when the Bitcoin community eagerly awaits the SEC’s approval of a spot Bitcoin ETF or several such ETFs.
Saylor posits that introducing a spot Bitcoin ETF could be the “most significant development on Wall Street in three decades,” as it would grant access to BTC to institutional and mainstream investors who were previously unable to do so.
The potential launch of a spot Bitcoin ETF in the United States has generated a degree of pessimism among certain individuals.
According to Trezor’s Bitcoin analyst Josef Tetek, a spot Bitcoin ETF could liberate individuals from self-custody and generate “millions of unbacked Bitcoin.”
According to skeptics such as BitMEX co-founder Arthur Hayes, spot Bitcoin ETFs could “destroy” Bitcoin if they become too successful, among other dangers.
