Metaplanet freezes 319.5 million-share insider equity pool after acknowledging dilution

Metaplanet, a publicly listed company in Japan, said in an Aug. 18 filing that its internal equity pool mechanism had increased dilution for existing shareholders. The board then froze the pool at 319.5 million shares rather than canceling it. The filing said the pool accounted for roughly 25% of the company’s total shares outstanding. It was originally established in 2023 at 20% of issuable shares, but expanded as Metaplanet repeatedly issued new stock from 2024 onward to buy Bitcoin. Over that period, the company’s total share count rose from 153.9 million to 1.35 billion. Under the freeze, holders cannot sell the shares until Aug. 17, 2031. Ten days after the disclosure, CEO Simon Gerovich exercised one-third of the vested rights and acquired about 64.03 million shares for 6.4 billion yen. On Tuesday, Metaplanet shares fell 9.96% to close at 244 yen. Some shareholders argued that the company’s roughly $2 billion market capitalization sits below the roughly $3.4 billion value of its Bitcoin holdings, while insiders still retain claims tied to about one-quarter of the company’s equity.