On February 12, Michael Saylor, the visionary co-founder and Executive Chairman of MicroStrategy (NASDAQ: MSTR), joined CNBC’s “Closing Bell: Overtime” to share his expert insights with co-anchor Morgan Brennan. Amidst Bitcoin’s climb to its highest level in two years, surpassing the $50,000 mark, Saylor’s discussion ranged from the crypto industry’s current state, the recent introduction of spot Bitcoin ETFs in the U.S., to MicroStrategy’s strategic focus and its implications for the broader economy.
Bitcoin’s Unprecedented Popularity
Saylor highlighted Bitcoin’s ascent as the world’s most popular investment asset, emphasizing its unique, digital, and global appeal. Saylor says that unlike traditional risk assets, Bitcoin’s value is not tied to any specific country, currency, company, or external factors like weather or geopolitical tensions. He believes that this uncorrelated nature makes it a compelling addition to investment portfolios, driving a surge in capital towards the asset class, especially with the long-awaited introduction of Bitcoin ETFs.
MicroStrategy’s Performance and Outlook
MicroStrategy, known for its significant Bitcoin holdings, has seen its shares soar, outperforming Bitcoin ETFs since their inception. Saylor attributes this to the rebalancing of capital among various Bitcoin investment avenues and the overwhelming demand for Bitcoin through ETFs, far outstripping the supply from miners.
Rebranding as a Bitcoin Development Company
In a strategic move, MicroStrategy has rebranded itself as a Bitcoin development company, reflecting its success with Bitcoin and its status as the largest corporate holder of the cryptocurrency. This rebranding signifies a shift towards actively managing its capital structure and business operations to accumulate more Bitcoin and promote the Bitcoin network’s growth.
Here is how the press release issued on February 6 about the firm’s release of its Q4 2023 financial results announced this rebranding:
“MicroStrategy (Nasdaq: MSTR) considers itself the world’s first Bitcoin development company. We are a publicly-traded operating company committed to the continued development of the bitcoin network through our activities in the financial markets, advocacy and technology innovation. As an operating business, we are able to use cashflows as well as proceeds from equity and debt financings to accumulate bitcoin, which serves as our primary treasury reserve asset. We also develop and provide industry-leading AI-powered enterprise analytics software that promotes our vision of Intelligence Everywhere, and are using our software development capabilities to develop bitcoin applications. We believe that the combination of our operating structure, bitcoin strategy and focus on technology innovation provides a unique opportunity for value creation.“
Software Business and AI Integration
Saylor also touched on MicroStrategy’s software business, particularly its transition to cloud-based services and the integration of generative AI offerings. This technological pivot is expected to drive the company’s growth, leveraging AI to accelerate the migration from legacy systems to the cloud.
Capital Management and Future Strategies
Looking ahead, Saylor discussed MicroStrategy’s approach to capital management, including leveraging equity markets, refinancing debt, and exploring creative financing options to support its Bitcoin acquisition strategy. This flexible and innovative approach to capital management underscores MicroStrategy’s commitment to maximizing shareholder value through its Bitcoin investments.
