Strategy, the largest corporate holder of Bitcoin, has sold a small amount of its BTC for the first time in nearly three years. According to a filing, the company sold 32 bitcoins last week at an average price of $77,135, generating roughly $2.5 million. The news sent shockwaves through the already fragile crypto market: Bitcoin fell below $71,000, trading around $70,560, and crypto-linked equities suffered across the board — Bullish dropped 7.99%, Circle lost 7.11%, and Strategy itself tumbled 5.85%.
It is not the first time Strategy has sold BTC. In December 2022, amid the FTX collapse and a market-wide plunge, Strategy sold 704 bitcoins at around $16,776 and quickly bought back 810 bitcoins two days later at $16,845 — more of a tactical move. The current sale, however, is rooted in mounting financial obligations.
Financial Pressure Forces Bitcoin Sale
The 32 BTC sale was primarily aimed at meeting dividend payments for Strategy’s fixed-income product, STRC. After repurchasing $1.5 billion in convertible debt last month, the company’s cash reserves fell to about $871 million, barely enough to cover its estimated $1.7 billion in annual preferred stock dividends for roughly six months. On May 29, STRC briefly dipped to $97.11 before closing at $98.57.
In its Q1 earnings report released earlier in May, Strategy had already warned: “If convertible notes mature or are redeemed without conversion, we may need to sell common stock or bitcoin to generate sufficient cash to satisfy our obligations.” The quarter saw a staggering net loss of $12.54 billion, nearly all from unrealized bitcoin losses of $14.46 billion. As of the quarter’s end, Strategy held 818,334 bitcoins with a total cost basis of $61.81 billion, implying an average purchase price of about $75,537 per coin.
The Polymarket Prediction Farce
Speculation on whether Strategy would sell BTC by May 31 created a wild ride on Polymarket. The probability had once been as low as 40%, but on June 1, it spiked from 12% to 80% before settling at 58%, with over $16.4 million in trading volume. However, because the company issued no official sale announcement, the market resolved as “Strategy did not sell BTC in May” — a stark reminder that prediction markets trade on defined events, not absolute reality.
Industry Confidence Takes a Hit
The sale not only cast doubt on the viability of the “DAT treasury model” but also dampened the accumulation spirit. Economist and gold advocate Peter Schiff quickly declared it a signal that Strategy is pivoting from the “largest buyer” to a seller, questioning who would step up as the next source of demand. Billionaire investor Mark Cuban disclosed he had liquidated most of his bitcoin stake, citing dwindling faith in bitcoin as a hedge against fiat devaluation and geopolitical risk — a disenchantment with the “digital gold” narrative. JPMorgan analysts also noted that a “depreciation trade” in both gold and bitcoin is heating up, with investors exiting traditional safe-haven assets.
Contrast this with founder Michael Saylor’s “HODL” post on May 28, urging the market to hold firm amid the downturn, and his past statement that “even if we sell 1 BTC, we will buy back 10 to 20 times more.” Strategy still holds a massive 843,706 bitcoins, worth $60.94 billion, at an average cost of $75,699 — representing an unrealized loss of $2.93 billion. Remarkably, just last month the position was sitting on an $8.2 billion gain.
With liquidity tightening and confidence waning, the crypto market may now be pinning its hopes on the Trump administration’s willingness to “love crypto once again.” In the near term, however, Strategy’s sale has added another layer of chill to an already cold market.