Strategy's Bitcoin Treasury Nears 800,000 Coins as Paper Losses Mount

Strategy aggressively expands its Bitcoin holdings to 780,897 BTC, funded via preferred stock to avoid dilution, despite a paper loss on its $59 billion investment.

Strategy continues to aggressively expand its Bitcoin holdings, adding 17,585 BTC in the first half of April alone. This latest acquisition, valued at approximately $1.3 billion, pushes the company's total treasury to 780,897 coins. The firm is now within striking distance of the symbolic 800,000 BTC threshold, a relentless accumulation that starkly contrasts with its accounting reality.

A purchase of 13,927 Bitcoin between April 6 and 12, funded entirely through the company's STRC preferred stock program, cost roughly $1 billion at an average price of $71,902 per coin. Crucially, this expansion required no issuance of MSTR common stock, allowing the company to buy Bitcoin without diluting existing shareholders. The pace remains staggering; in March 2026, Strategy purchased 46,233 BTC, nearly triple the amount produced by the global mining network that month.

This buying spree is financed through two primary channels: ongoing market offerings and the variable-rate perpetual preferred stock program, "STRC," which currently yields 11.5%. The STRC facility attracted over $1.76 billion in liquidity in the second week of April, though the securities trade slightly below their $100 par value. Strategy maintains a dollar reserve of about $2.25 billion to cover dividend payments and ongoing obligations. The program still has roughly $21.6 billion in remaining issuance capacity, alongside $27.1 billion available under its Class-A common stock program.

The financial mechanics reveal a deep tension. Strategy's total investment in Bitcoin stands at around $59 billion, with an average cost basis of $75,577 per coin. With Bitcoin currently trading near $74,500, the entire treasury is underwater on paper. For the first quarter of 2026, the company reported an unrealized GAAP loss on its digital asset holdings of $14.46 billion. This generated a tax benefit of $2.42 billion.

Internally, the company tracks a different metric: its "BTC Gain" for the year totals 37,339 coins, equivalent to a dollar gain of about $2.8 billion. This proprietary measure, central to Executive Chairman Michael Saylor's "Bitcoin Standard" framework, calculates Bitcoin accumulation relative to diluted shares outstanding. It is not a GAAP figure.

The capital structure is feeling the strain. The leverage ratio—measured as debt plus preferred stock against Bitcoin reserves—has climbed to 33%. Dividend payments on the preferred series are projected to reach approximately $904 million in 2026, a sharp increase from $217 million the prior year.

Strategy's stock, MSTR, is highly sensitive to Bitcoin's price, with a beta of about 3.6 against the broader market. A single-day rally in Bitcoin to around $76,000 on April 14 propelled MSTR shares 8.3% higher. However, the stock currently trades near $140, more than 55% below its July 2025 high of $457.

All eyes are on the upcoming earnings report scheduled for after the U.S. market close on May 5, 2026, followed by a webinar at 5 p.m. Eastern Time. The $14.46 billion quarterly paper loss will dominate discussion, alongside details on the company's integration of AI-driven corporate analytics with its Bitcoin strategy. The market will be watching to see if Bitcoin can sustainably break above the $75,577 level—the precise point where Strategy's massive treasury turns a paper profit.