Strategy, once hailed as the top 'DAT stock' and the largest diamond-handed Bitcoin holder, sold 32 BTC last week at an average price of $77,135, generating $2.5 million and ending a three-year streak of uninterrupted accumulation. The news pushed Bitcoin below $71,000, trading around $70,560, while crypto-related stocks fell broadly—Bullish dropped 7.99%, DeFi Development 7.97%, Circle 7.11%, Strategy itself 5.85%, and Upexi 5.04%.
This was not the company's first ever reduction in Bitcoin holdings. Back in 2022, amid the FTX collapse that pushed BTC below $20,000, Strategy sold 704 BTC on December 22 at an average of $16,776, only to repurchase 810 BTC just two days later at $16,845. However, for the following three years, Strategy had maintained a strict buy-and-hold policy, making the latest sale a clear break from its established image.
A Sale Driven by Debt and Dividend Pressure
The immediate reason for disposing 32 BTC was to meet dividend obligations on STRC, Strategy's fixed-income digital credit product. After buying back $1.5 billion in convertible debt last month, the company's cash reserves fell to about $871 million, just enough to cover approximately six months of its estimated $1.7 billion annual preferred dividend commitments. On May 29, STRC dropped as low as $97.11 before recovering to close at $98.57.
In its Q1 earnings report released in early May, Strategy had already warned that if convertible notes matured or were redeemed without conversion into common stock, the company might need to sell common stock or Bitcoin to raise cash. The quarter's net loss reached $12.54 billion, almost entirely from a $14.46 billion unrealized loss on Bitcoin. At the end of Q1, 818,334 BTC were held at a total cost basis of $61.81 billion, giving an average entry price near $75,537. The company explicitly stated it would not rule out selling BTC to cover interest payments.
After the sale, Strategy still holds approximately 843,706 BTC worth $60.94 billion, with an average cost of $75,699 and a floating loss of about $2.93 billion. Just last month, thanks to a broader market rebound, the same position was showing an $8.2 billion paper gain. Founder Michael Saylor published a 'HODL' post on May 28, urging holders to stay firm amid the downturn, but the corporate reality of funding pressure forced a sale.
The Hoarding Faith Put to the Test
The impact on crypto accumulation sentiment cannot be overstated. As the largest publicly traded corporate Bitcoin buyer, Strategy's sale is being interpreted as a sign that the 'DAT treasury model has hit a dead end,' potentially dampening buying appetite further. Saylor once famously said that selling one BTC would be followed by buying 10 to 20 times more, but so far the selling has materialized while the promised re-buy has yet to appear.
Prediction Market Controversy on Polymarket
Strategy's sell order also stirred a resolution drama on Polymarket. The contract 'Will Strategy sell BTC before May 31?' saw its odds plummet to 12% recently, then rocket to 80% on June 1 after the news broke, before settling back to 58%. Trading volume exceeded $16.4 million. Because Strategy did not issue an official sale statement, the event was finally settled as 'Strategy did not sell BTC in May,' a reminder that prediction markets trade on rule-defined outcomes rather than the full real-time picture.
Following the sale announcement, gold advocate and crypto critic Peter Schiff immediately called Strategy's shift from the largest Bitcoin buyer to a seller a symbolic signal, questioning where new demand would come from. Billionaire investor Mark Cuban, who once viewed Bitcoin as 'a better version of gold,' disclosed he has sold most of his bitcoin holdings, citing weakening faith in BTC as a hedge against fiat depreciation and geopolitical risk, and expressing disappointment in the digital gold narrative. JPMorgan also noted that 'depreciation trades' in both gold and Bitcoin are heating up as investors exit safe-haven assets.
With market liquidity and sentiment already under strain, Strategy's sell-off adds further headwinds. While Michael Saylor continues to publicly champion the faith narrative, the company's actions convey a decidedly different message. After repeated price declines, Bitcoin and the broader crypto sector may now be left waiting for the Trump administration to once again extend a helping hand.