Strategy Sells $2 Billion of Stock, Leaves Bitcoin Holdings Unchanged, and Builds a New $1.59 Billion Cash Pool

Strategy sold 18,261,118 shares of common stock for net proceeds of $2.01 billion in the week ended Aug. 23 and did not buy any bitcoin with the proceeds, according to an 8-K filed Monday. Instead, the company used about $136.4 million to repurchase 1,431,212 STRC preferred shares. It also put $300 million into its USD Reserve, lifting that pool to $5.10 billion, and set aside the remaining $1.59 billion as a new pool called USD Cash. Bitcoin holdings were unchanged at 840,447 BTC. Strategy said those coins were bought for $63.36 billion at an average price of $75,385 each. The new USD Cash pool gives Strategy more room to move. The company said it may use the money for general Bitcoin Treasury Company purposes, including buying bitcoin, repurchasing common or preferred stock, retiring convertible notes, or adding to the USD Reserve. Strategy said the extra flexibility should help it respond faster if there are dislocations in the bitcoin market or in its own securities. The filing reads as a cash buffer for the next period of stress, not as a shift in the company’s thesis. About $516.6 million remains available under the digital credit securities repurchase program, and $1 billion remains under the MSTR buyback program. Strategy shares closed Monday above $122, up more than 31% in August. The more restrained tone follows a difficult stretch. Strategy overhauled its financing in late June and in July disclosed that it had sold $216 million of bitcoin, its largest disposal ever, to fund dividends and rebuild the reserve. Pressure had centered on STRC, the variable-rate preferred that funds much of the company’s buying. In June, it fell far below par, forcing Strategy to pause the share sales that sit at the core of Michael Saylor’s flywheel.